Nikola Jokic had 32 points, 14 assists and 14 rebounds for his sixth triple-double of the season, and the host Denver Nuggets beat the Indiana Pacers 117-100 on Saturday night.
Jokic also had a season-high eight turnovers and Tim Hardaway Jr. added 17 points for Denver, which played without injured guard Jamal Murray (left calf tightness) and forward Aaron Gordon (left hamstring).
Aaron Nesmith tallied 25 points, Andrew Nembhard returned from a seven-game absence due to a left shoulder strain to score 22 points and Pascal Siakam finished with 14 points for Indiana. Monte Morris, signed Friday, totaled three points in 15 minutes.
Murray (22.8 points per game) and Gordon (20.1) are second and third, respectively, in scoring for Denver behind Jokic (24.4). Head coach David Adelman opted to start Jalen Pickett, who has seen sporadic court time, to keep the bench rotation intact, and he recorded two points in 17 1/2 minutes.
Peyton Watson started in place of Gordon and had a season-high 16 points. Cam Johnson rebounded from a scoreless game Friday night against Golden State to finish with 12 points, and Julian Strawther also had 12.
Jokic nearly had a double-double in the first quarter (10 points, nine rebounds) and went into halftime with 16 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists.
He led Denver to a 19-point lead midway through the second quarter, but the Pacers ended the half on an 18-8 run to get within 56-47 at the break.
Indiana continued to chip away and got within 64-61 with 9:13 left in the third quarter thanks to a technical foul called on Gordon while wearing street clothes and sitting on the bench.
Hardaway’s 3-pointer midway through the third pushed the lead to 81-69. The Pacers made another push to cut the deficit to 85-79 on Nesmith’s 3-pointer, but with Jokic on the bench at the end of the third, Denver stretched its advantage to 95-82.
Siakam hit a 10-footer to open the fourth, but the Nuggets continued to extend the lead. Strawther scored five consecutive points and Jonas Valanciunas nailed a hook shot to make it 102-86. Jokic hit a 29-foot 3-pointer midway through the fourth to give Denver a 109-88 lead, its largest of the game.
