Nuggets leave defense on Bourbon Street but hold on to top Pelicans

NEW ORLEANS — For much of the Denver Nuggets’ 2016-17 season, defense has been an afterthought.

Denver, the league’s 29th-ranked defense on the year, has struggled on that end of the floor all season and Tuesday night in New Orleans, they left their defense on Bourbon Street allowing the Pelicans to shoot 51.5 percent from the field but still managed to eek out a 134-131 win to keep themselves alive in the race for the Western Conference’s eighth seed.

In fact, defense wasn’t much of a priority for either side tonight, as Denver shot 53.5 percent for the game for went 13-30 (43.3 percent) from three.

“First half was a shootout,” Nuggets’ coach Michael Malone said. “Neither team defended at all.”

A Davis layup with under a minute left brought New Orleans to within two after Denver let much their nine-point fourth-quarter lead dissipate. Then, Nikola Jokic split a pair of free throws leading to a DeMarcus Cousins three from the top of the key with 30 seconds remaining. Wilson Chandler went 1-2 from the line on the next possession to set up a potential game-winner for New Orleans, but Jrue Holiday dribbled the ball off his foot and was whistled for an over-and-back violation. After Emmanuel Mudiay again split yet another pair of free throws, Gary Harris intercepted a Pelicans pass which sealed things for Denver as Holiday’s three at the buzzer was off.

“Gallo called the switch and I was just trying to get out there,” Harris said of his game-winning steal.

Davis, a noted Nuggets killer who lit Denver up for 50 points on opening night in New Orleans and then 31 points and 13 rebounds in their matchup on March 26, had his way with Denver again.

Davis scored 41 points on 18-31 shooting and poured in 16 second-half points after scoring 25 points over the game’s first two quarters. The 23-year-old, who Pelicans’ coach Alvin Gentry said pregame should be on the All-NBA first team, dunked, drove and shot his way to another special night. Davis and Cousins combined for 71 of New Orleans’ 131 points.

“They can shoot, they can drive, they can post you up, even tough shots,” Nikola Jokic said of Davis and Cousins. “Even then they go for the offensive rebound. They’re really like offensive scoring killers.”

The Nuggets executed as they wanted at will throughout the game but really got in their groove with a 10-2 run to start the fourth quarter as Davis watched from the New Orleans bench during his regularly scheduled rest. The run included two Emmanuel Mudiay threes and a Danilo Gallinari triple with 6:53 left in the fourth that stretched the Nuggets’ lead to nine, at 119-110, a margin the Pelicans couldn’t climb back from.

With veteran Jameer Nelson sidelined with a right calf strain for a second consecutive game and Will Barton nursing a left foot injury, Mudiay once again saw a healthy dose of minutes.

Mudiay played 28 minutes, scoring 14 points on 5-15 shooting to go with 7 assists, showing again that Denver can run their offense like a well-oiled machine even with a minus shooter like Mudiay running the point.

However, Mudiay wasn’t on the floor to close out the Pelicans, a role he occupied two nights earlier in Miami. That spot was given to rookie Jamal Murray, who started for a second consecutive game and scored 16 points on 7-14 shooting to go with five rebounds and five assists.

“Fourth quarter, when the game is on the line, he’s not afraid to hit big shots,” Malone said of Murray. “Him stepping up to the free-throw line in Miami, I didn’t worry at all if he was going to make those shots. I really didn’t. When he sees that ball go through the net, he gets going. You can just see it in his eyes. He’s shooting into a very big basketball hoop.”

Elsewhere for Denver, Jokic finished with 21 points 12 rebounds and 4 assists. Harris had a productive night as well, scoring 23 points on 10-12 shooting. Gallinari scored a team-high 28 points and went 5-10 from distance.

Cousins, who was kept at bay by Denver through the first three quarters, only scoring 14 points, exploded in the fourth for 16 and kept New Orleans within reach.

Denver survives New Orleans and lives to see another day in the Western Conference’s race for the eighth seed.

“It’s funny, a lot of people keep on counting us out,” Malone said. “We lose three in a row and a lot of people kind of give up hope. We haven’t. Everybody in that locker room is remaining positive, optimistic and we’re going to play this thing out.”

Postgame Video

Footnotes

Kenneth Faried (low back tightness), who started for the Nuggets at power forward, did not play in the second half. Faried went scoreless on 0-1 shooting and recorded two rebounds and two assists in ten minutes.

What’s Next

Denver finishes up their road trip in Houston Wednesday before returning home for their last two home games of the season Friday against New Orleans and Sunday versus Oklahoma City.