DENVER — After trailing by 15 points in the first half, the Denver Nuggets outscored the Thunder 32-18 in the third quarter, but Russell Westbrook‘s 16 fourth-quarter points lifted Oklahoma City to a 95-94 victory.
Here’s how each Nuggets player performed.
Jamal Murray (B-) – Murray had a few defensive lapses tonight against the Thunder. He bit on an Andre Roberson shot fake and got beat backdoor on a few occasions, but Murray was solid on offense. He scored from three and the midrange, but was only able to log 25 minutes – his lowest total in the last six games. Nuggets coach Michael Malone wasn’t too thrilled with Murray not fouling earlier with under 30 seconds left with the score tied and Denver wanting to get its best defensive players on the floor for the Thunder’s last possession, based on his postgame remarks.
Gary Harris (B) – Harris was a team-worst minus-14 in the first half but rebounded in the third quarter and finished with 17 points on 7-17 shooting. Harris finished with 17 points and played through a brutal third-quarter fall where he hit his head on the floor after a drive to the rim. He stayed in the game and looked fine afterward.
Torrey Craig (A+) – Craig’s career night came against one of the tougher covers in the league. Westbrook went off for 38 points, but the G League call-up did a solid job defending the reigning Most Valuable Player. Craig was smart to back off Westbrook as often as possible and make him score from mid-range for most of the night. Craig only allowed a few blow-bys but unfortunately, Westbrook got hot in the fourth. Not many defenders could have done much against Westbrook once he got going. Craig scored 14 points on a perfect 5-5 shooting. His offense was an added bonus versus the Thunder.
Wilson Chandler (A-) – Denver’s starting small forward is starting to look like his old self. Chandler has been much more aggressive on offense as of late and again did a good job tonight of getting to the hoop. Chandler is a strong driver and can overpower smaller defenders when he wants to. He scored nine points on 4-10 shooting but really stood out on defense. Chandler teamed with other Nuggets defenders to limit Paul George to eight points on 3-13 shooting and Carmelo Anthony to four points on 2-6 shooting.
Mason Plumlee (A-) – Plumlee was solid on defense tonight and started his second-straight game as Nikola Jokic works his way back to full strength from an ankle injury. The Thunder were able to score 28 paint points in the first half, but Plumlee had some solid defensive moments in the second. He blocked Westbrook from behind on one possession and finished with nine rebounds.
Nikola Jokic (A) – Jokic came off Denver’s bench and subbed in after the Nuggets scored just six points in the game’s first six-and-a-half minutes. Denver didn’t do a great job of finding Jokic at first but went on a 9-2 scoring run behind his play soon after to get themselves within striking distance of Oklahoma City. Jokic finished with 13 points on 5-9 shooting to go with nine rebounds. The Nuggets didn’t do a good enough job of finding him in the second half. The Serbian looked to reinjure his ankle and crumpled to the ground in the fourth quarter but checked back into the game after he got it looked at on the sidelines.
Will Barton (D) – Tonight was an off-night for Barton after a string of really solid performances in what has been a huge year for Denver’s sixth-man. Barton said his back was still bothering him after the Nuggets’ win over the Pelicans on Friday and maybe it hampered him in Oklahoma City. Barton was just 2-15 from the field and 0-8 from three. He finished with eight assists and played exclusively backup point guard with Emmanuel Mudiay out with an ankle injury. Barton was also 0-5 from the field and 0-4 from three in the fourth quarter. Denver needed to go through Jokic more often late in the game.
Trey Lyles (A+) – Lyles pieced together another impressive game against the Thunder. The reserve forward continues to show that he’s not afraid to look for his own offense and shot 6-10 from the field and 3-6 from distance. Lyles hauled in some impressive rebounds on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor tonight and keeps fighting for more playing time. Lyles also showed some nice chemistry alongside Jokic in the Nuggets’ frontcourt.
Malik Beasley (A) – Beasley only played 10 minutes but along with the rest of Denver’s bench unit (perhaps aided by playing with Jokic) finished in the positives. He was tied for a team-high plus-seven and played solid defense.
The Nuggets return to Pepsi Center for a home game against the Minnesota Timberwolves Wednesday night.
