Nikola Jokic contributed 28 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds and Michael Porter Jr. finished with 30 points as the host Denver Nuggets beat the Orlando Magic 112-90 on Thursday night.
Jokic’s triple-double was his NBA-leading 24th of the season, while Porter has hit 30 points in three straight games.
Christian Braun scored 16 points and Aaron Gordon contributed 11 for Denver, which improved to 10-1 on the second night of back-to-back games.
Wendall Carter Jr. scored 19 points, Paolo Banchero added 18 and Franz Wagner had 14 points for the Magic, which finished 1-5 on their road trip.
The Nuggets were without three rotation players – Russell Westbrook (hamstring), Peyton Watson (right knee sprain) and Jamal Murray (left knee inflammation). Westbrook has missed the last three games, Watson is expected to miss at least three more weeks and Murray is considered day to day.
Gary Harris (left hamstring) and Jalen Suggs (left quad contusion) didn’t play for Orlando.
The Magic led by six in the first quarter, but Denver surged in the second quarter behind Porter’s 16 points. With the game tied at 32, Porter hit a step-back 12-footer. Then he dunked off a pass from Gordon and drained a 26-footer, and the Nuggets led 59-50 at halftime.
Denver scored six straight points to open the third quarter and increased its lead to 65-50. The Magic cut the deficit to 70-58 before the Nuggets put it away.
Gordon converted a three-point play, Julian Strawther hit his first bucket of the game and Jokic sank a hook shot to stretch the lead to 78-60 midway through the third. After Carter made two free throws, Porter drained two 3-pointers, made 2 of 3 free throws and Braun turned two Jokic passes into dunks to give Denver a 90-62 lead.
Jokic completed his 154th career triple-double when he rebounded Banchero’s missed free throw with less than a second left in the quarter.
The Nuggets led by 33 at one point in the fourth.
–Field Level Media
