Nuggets go on near eight-minute scoring drought, can't overcome Victor Oladipo's career-high 47

Victor Oladipo‘s career-high 47 points powered the Indiana Pacers to a 126-116 overtime win over the Denver Nuggets.

After Denver led by eight with 3:51 left in the fourth quarter, Indiana went on a 23-5 run over the remainder of the game. The Pacers outscored the Nuggets 12-2 in overtime and went on what amounted to a 20-0 run spanning the fourth quarter and extra period with Denver’s only bucket of overtime coming on a Kenneth Faried layup with 13 seconds on the clock.

Once Gary Harris‘ three with 2:54 remaining in the fourth fell, the Nuggets didn’t score again until Faried’s make at the end of overtime.

Oladipo, who’s a leading candidate for the league’s Most Improved Player award, was stellar for the Pacers. The 25-year-old shot 15-28 from the field and 6-12 from three-point range to go with seven rebounds, six assists, and two steals.

Denver outscored Indiana 35-22 in the first quarter and led 61-59 at halftime. But the Pacers caught up to the Nuggets by outscoring Denver 31-22 in the third quarter. Then, Trey Lyles then came off Denver’s bench to provide some needed firepower.

Lyles, who grew up in Indiana and went to high school in the Hoosier State, scored 15 points in the fourth and finished with a new career-high 25. Lyles’ output earned him important minutes at the end of the game in Nuggets’ coach Micahel Malone’s closing five.

But Lyles wasn’t able to attempt another field goal after his layup with just under four minutes to go in the fourth quarter.

Elsewhere for Denver, Will Barton and Gary Harris scored 18 points apiece. Wilson Chandler scored 14 first-quarter points and finished with 18 on the night.

The Nuggets shot 52.1 percent from the field and hit 9-20 from distance in the first half but converted on just 43.6 percent of their field goals in the second half.

Denver committed 21 turnovers on the night. Harris, Faried, and Emmanuel Mudiay each had four.