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    The Denver Nuggets fall behind early but recover to defeat the Brooklyn Nets 144-139 in the overtime track meeting
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    The Denver Nuggets fall behind early but recover to defeat the Brooklyn Nets 144-139 in the overtime track meeting

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    The Denver Nuggets earned an overtime victory on the East Coast and found themselves in the exact same situation the next day. After defeating the Toronto Raptors with a late-game comeback yesterday, Denver took a similar approach tonight and found itself back on the right side with a 144-139 overtime victory over the Brooklyn Nets. In a game where defense was optional, Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray led an all-around performance that saw the Nuggets overcome big plays from Cameron Johnson, Cam Thomas and Dennis Schroder.

    Murray got the Nuggets off to a good start with a couple of shots that helped them take an early lead. Unfortunately, it wouldn't last. The impact of the clash was evident as the Nuggets' energy was mediocre at best. Still, Murray kept them going with some help from the other starters. Schroder began to heat up and quickly extended the Nets' lead to nearly double digits. Denver continued to play tiredly and the lead continued to grow as the bench came on. The Nets took full advantage. By the end of the first quarter, the Nuggets had given up forty points and trailed 40-27.

    Things didn't go much better for Denver early in the second round, with Brooklyn extending the lead to seventeen before Denver finally started to do some defense. They were able to get back to eleven points and Jordi Fernandez took a timeout. Denver started to play a little better, but the Nets still hit a few threes, including a very hard one from Johnson, and maintained the lead at about ten. Jamal continued to be the catalyst for the Nuggets' offense. When he didn't get shots, he found his way to the line and converted his attempts. However, the defense continued to be weak and that prevented the Nuggets from closing the gap. Johnson was inexplicably left to his own devices at the three-point line the entire half and was 5-for-5 from deep. At halftime, Denver trailed 73(!!!)-62.

    The Nuggets got off to a good start in the third quarter. They got two stops and then a layup from Christian Braun and another three-pointer from Murray to cut the lead to four and allow Jordi Fernandez to call a timeout. It took the Nets a total of three minutes before they finally got a basket. The Nuggets trailed by as many as two points before the Nets finally started hitting again and stayed ahead of Denver by a few possessions. However, the intensity was noticeably higher on the road team. Both clubs went back and forth until the middle of the quarter as their stars scored goals. As the quarter came to a close, Denver brought in its bench but remained just a bucket or two away from taking the lead, and the Nets continued to fend off the Nuggets' advances with three-pointers. Brooklyn ended the third quarter with a 99-96 lead.

    Peyton Watson opened the fourth period with a three-pointer from the corner and then a drive to the basket by Russell Westbrook gave the Nuggets the lead. He led the offensive attack from the Nuggets' bench and showed how positive he can be as a spark plug off the bench. Eventually, the reserve group faltered on offense while Ziaire Williams gave Brooklyn great minutes. Halfway through the quarter, the Nets defended their one-point lead. Denver had a few chances but kept making stupid fouls (Brown had a particularly bad one) which prevented them from taking the lead. With three minutes left they were still two points behind. A three-pointer from Aaron Gordon finally gave the Nuggets the lead with two minutes left. Thomas scored two straight baskets, including an incredibly tough fadeaway against Braun, to give the Nets the lead with thirty-three seconds left in the game. Just like last night, the Nuggets played the possession and free throw game and fought for one last shot to take a two lead lead. However, Jokic hit a simple catch with eight seconds left and that gave the Nets a chance to win at the buzzer. Dorian Finney-Smith had a good look from the corner but only caught iron and when the game was tied at 125, the Nuggets went to overtime again.

    The Jokic maestro led the start of OT for Denver. First he drew a shooting foul, then he pushed his way to an easy basket, then he hit a cutting Michael Porter Jr. for an easy layup. On the Nets side, Thomas went cold and the Nuggets had an opportunity to steal another road game. They had a few opportunities, but Schroder hit a three-pointer to pull Brooklyn within a three-pointer. Braun responded with one of his own and the Nets ran out of time. They refused to give up and started playing the possession and free throw game themselves. Gordon closed the door with two free throws in the final fifteen seconds and the Nuggets won the battle for most points 144-139.

    Best matchup: Jamal Murray vs. Dennis Schroder

    Oct. 29, 2024; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Denver Nuggets point guard Jamal Murray (27) dribbles the ball against Brooklyn Nets point guard Dennis Schroder (17) in the first half at Barclays Center. Mandatory attribution: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

    The battle for the point guard position was tough tonight. Schroder led the Nets with 28 points and Murray scored 24 points of his own. Murray didn't have the best night out of three games, but he still had his last game going and that made him a very effective weapon on offense. It wasn't what I would call a nice Murray game, but it was very effective. Schroder, on the other hand, shot from three-point range and, like most Nets, did most of his damage from beyond the arc. However, he still showed some of that speed and had a few easy baskets of his own on layups.

    What struck me most: team effort

    Everyone in Denver played their part tonight. Jokic and Murray were stars, Gordon fed off of them, Michael Porter Jr. knocked down his throws. Additionally, the role players were also great. Braun was back scoring in double figures and was a consistent chaser on defense, Russ went all out on Russ off the bench and led a big run behind his energy in the second half, Dario Saric made a shot and Watson hit a big three! An all around great effort from a group of people who had excuses to let this game pass (and almost did early on) but didn't.

    Jokic collects the thing to bet with ease

    There's really nothing more to say about Jokic. He is simply the most dominant basketball player in the world. As predicted, he had no problems providing assists tonight, reaching the double-digit assists mark (+250) before the end of the third quarter. In OT it's another absolute stat monster for him as he finishes with 29 points, 18 rebounds and 16 assists.

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