National Basketball Association
Denver 115, Detroit 98
When: 9:00 PM ET, Tuesday, February 25, 2020
Where: Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado
Officials: #9 Natalie Sago, #50 Gediminas Petraitis, #6 Tony Brown
Attendance: 19143

Jerami Grant scored a career-high 29 points, Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray scored 16 each, and the host Denver Nuggets beat the Detroit Pistons 115-98 on Tuesday night.

Michael Porter Jr. had 13 points for the Nuggets, who won their second straight game.

Derrick Rose and Christian Wood scored 20 points each, Brandon Knight had 14, Langston Galloway 12 and Tony Snell 10 for Detroit, which has lost seven in a row.

The Nuggets' lead was 10 after the third quarter, and the Pistons were within nine early in the fourth before Denver went on a run to pull away.

Grant had two dunks and Porter drained a couple of jumpers during a 9-0 surge that put the Nuggets up 93-75. Jokic, who was quiet for most of the second half, hit a 3-pointer that gave Denver a 102-82 lead, and the Nuggets held on to improve to 40-18.

The Nuggets increased their 13-point halftime lead to 65-50 on a dunk by Paul Millsap, but Detroit didn't go away. Rose drove for a layup, Svi Mykhailiuk sank a 3-pointer, Rose was fouled on a shot from deep and hit all three free throws, and Wood split a pair from the line during a 9-0 run that got the Pistons within six.

Millsap scored on an offensive rebound and Gary Harris hit a 3-pointer after Monte Morris stole the ball from Rose, making it 70-59 with 5:06 left in the third.

Murray and Jokic had 11 points each in the first half, during which Denver slowly built a double-digit lead. The Pistons recovered from an early nine-point deficit to score 11 straight and take a 23-21 lead on Thon Maker's dunk.

The Nuggets scored the last eight points of the period to take a six-point lead into the second, an advantage they never relinquished.

The Pistons trailed by 13 early in the second quarter but went on an 8-2 run to get within 43-36 on a layup by Rose midway through the frame.

The visitors kept pace with Denver and pulled within 47-41 on Mykhailiuk's 3-pointer with 3:39 left, but the Nuggets closed the half out to lead 59-46 at intermission.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Detroit   Denver
Derrick Rose 20 Scoring Jerami Grant 29
Tony Snell 7 Assists Jamal Murray 8
Christian Wood 10 Rebounds Michael Porter Jr. 8
Derrick Rose 7 Free Throws Made Nikola Jokic 5
Derrick Rose 2 Steals Nikola Jokic 4
John Henson 1 Blocks Monte Morris 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Detroit 98 40.7 15-41 17-21 24 33 2 8 16
Denver 115 57.9 9-19 18-22 33 41 3 12 18
Upcoming Games
  • Denver will play their next game on the road against L.A. Clippers. The Nuggets have a W/L % of .675 after a win and .722 after a loss.
  • Detroit will play their next game on the road against Phoenix. The Pistons have a W/L % of .200 after a win and .375 after a loss.