Nuggets
Nuggets' 41-Point Second Quarter and Free-Throw Edge Bury Jazz
Denver outscored Utah 41-28 in the second quarter to erase an early 7-point deficit and never trailed again, winning 117-106 at Delta Center. A 30-of-42 trip to the free-throw line and 74 bench points were the difference. Both are preseason tune-ups, so the result settles nothing for the standings, but it squares the season series at 1-1 after Utah won the first meeting 109-97.
By the Hoops Nightly Desk · updated 14 d ago01The story of the nightThe second quarter flipped itUtah opened the game well, leading 31-24 after one quarter behind Darryn Peterson.
Utah opened the game well, leading 31-24 after one quarter behind Darryn Peterson. Denver answered with a 41-point second quarter, outscoring the Jazz 41-28 to go up 65-59 at the half. From there the Nuggets controlled the game, outscoring Utah 30-22 in the third and matching them 22-25 in the fourth. Denver's biggest lead was 21 points; Utah's biggest was only 9. Each team had 3 lead changes, all of them coming in the opening minutes before Denver's run buried the game.
02Peterson and Gordon carried the scoringDarryn Peterson led all scorers with 23 points on 10-of-18 shooting for Utah, but he finished a team-worst minus-11.
Darryn Peterson led all scorers with 23 points on 10-of-18 shooting for Utah, but he finished a team-worst minus-11. Aaron Gordon paced Denver with 18 points on 5-of-7 shooting, including 2-of-3 from three and 6-of-7 at the line. Denver's bench did the rest: Julian Strawther added 15 points on 4-of-7 shooting with a plus-13, Cam Whitmore scored 14, and Marvin Bagley III added 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting with a game-high plus-15. Nikola Jokic played just 16.3 minutes, finishing with 6 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists.
03Won at the foul line and off the benchDenver shot 30-of-42 from the free-throw line against Utah's 12-of-22, a 18-point swing right there.
Denver shot 30-of-42 from the free-throw line against Utah's 12-of-22, a 18-point swing right there. The Nuggets' bench outscored Utah's bench 74-53, and Denver won the paint 46-38 and fast-break points 16-0. Utah actually shot more threes (37 to Denver's 28) but made fewer at a worse rate, 12-of-37 against 11-of-28. Denver also won the boards 52-56... no, Utah had the rebounding edge 56-52, but it didn't matter against the bench scoring and free-throw gap.
04What it means for both teamsThis was a preseason game, so the final score carries no standings weight for either side.
This was a preseason game, so the final score carries no standings weight for either side. For Denver, the second-unit scoring from Strawther, Whitmore and Bagley is an encouraging sign with Jokic and Murray logging limited minutes. For Utah, Peterson's 23-point outing is a notable individual performance even in a loss, while the team's poor free-throw shooting (12-of-22) and zero fast-break points are the kind of fixable issues preseason is meant to expose. The season series between the two teams is now split 1-1.
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