Denver Nuggets (40-26) beat Houston Rockets (40-25) 129-93 at home on Wednesday, March 11. The final margin was 36 points.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Nuggets struck first, taking the opening quarter 24-20 and a 4-point lead after one. The Nuggets kept the pressure on with a 29-27 second quarter, carrying a 6-point lead into halftime.
The Nuggets won the third 40-22 to create some separation, taking a 24-point lead into the fourth. The Nuggets took the fourth 36-24; the Nuggets finished the job for a 129-93 regulation win.
Why it was lopsided
The Nuggets got more from their shots, finishing at 64.9% effective field-goal shooting compared with 45.4% for the Rockets. The Nuggets made 18.4 free throws per 100 field-goal attempts, compared with 5.2 for the Rockets. That shooting gap supplied the clearest edge.
The Rockets did win one battle, second chances: ORB% of 32% against 22.2%. The Nuggets made up for it elsewhere.
At roughly 100 possessions per team, the Nuggets produced 129.1 points per 100 possessions to 93.1 for the Rockets.
Who stood out
Nikola Jokic was the game's biggest individual force for DEN: 16 pts, 12 reb, 13 ast, 5 stl on 6-12 shooting. His Game Score of 23.8 led everyone. His team was +27 with him on the floor.
Nikola Jokic (16 pts, 12 reb, 13 ast) recorded a double-double.
What it means
The pre-game Win Meter had it close to a coin flip, at about 58% for the Nuggets.
Across the last 6 meetings in our records, Denver Nuggets lead 4-2.
The Nuggets are now 40-26, and the Rockets are 40-25. The Nuggets last five before this game: L-W-W-L-L.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.