National Basketball Association
Denver 107, Minnesota 106
When: 9:00 PM ET, Saturday, February 2, 2019
Where: Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Officials: #11 Derrick Collins, #43 Matt Myers, #25 Tony Brothers
Attendance: 17208

Nikola Jokic had 13 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists for his ninth triple-double of the season, and the Denver Nuggets held on to beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 107-106 in Minneapolis on Saturday night.

Malik Beasley scored 22 points, Will Barton finished with 20 points and Monte Morris had 17 points and 10 assists for Denver, which has won six straight.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 31 points and 12 rebounds and Jerryd Bayless had 15 points and 10 assists for Minnesota.

Denver was again without its starting backcourt. Point guard Jamal Murray missed his fourth straight game with a left ankle sprain and shooting guard Gary Harris was sidelined with a right adductor strain.

The result allowed Nuggets coach Michael Malone to clinch the job as the coach of Team LeBron in the All-Star Game. Malone and his staff will be on the bench for the Feb. 17 game in Charlotte, N.C.

The Nuggets had to hold on after turning it over with 14 seconds left and leading by one. The Timberwolves called a timeout but Luol Deng missed a corner 3-pointer with 3.5 seconds left.

The Nuggets led by one after three quarters and increased it to 98-92 midway through the fourth on a 3-pointer by Trey Lyles. Dario Saric and Josh Okogie hit from long range around a missed floater by Morris to tie it at 98 with 6:14 left.

Jokic checked back in and fed Torrey Craig for a layup, and Morris hit a jumper in the lane to give Denver a four-point lead.

Minnesota stayed close despite missing six straight shots and going 3 minutes, 30 seconds without a point. Towns split a pair of free throws to break the drought but Denver never gave up the lead. Jokic got his 10th assist with a long pass to a streaking Beasley, who hit a layup to make it 107-104 with 1:02 left.

Denver trailed by nine after one but climbed back into it with a 12-2 run early in the second to take a 45-42 lead. Minnesota led 64-61 at halftime.

The Nuggets took the lead early in the third quarter but Minnesota fought back with a 10-0 run. The Timberwolves led 85-79 after a jumper by Towns but Denver finished the period on a 10-3 run to lead 89-88 heading into the fourth.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Denver   Minnesota
Malik Beasley 22 Scoring Karl-Anthony Towns 31
Nikola Jokic 10 Assists Jerryd Bayless 10
Nikola Jokic 16 Rebounds Karl-Anthony Towns 12
Nikola Jokic 5 Free Throws Made Karl-Anthony Towns 5
Malik Beasley 2 Steals Taj Gibson 2
Mason Plumlee 3 Blocks Luol Deng 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Denver 107 47.2 13-33 10-14 29 48 7 3 10
Minnesota 106 47.2 11-34 11-16 27 41 4 6 10
Upcoming Games
  • Minnesota will play their next game on the road against Memphis. The Timberwolves have a W/L % of .480 after a win and .481 after a loss.
  • Denver will play their next game on the road against Detroit. The Nuggets have a W/L % of .757 after a win and .600 after a loss.