The Nuggets needed to reassure everyone, especially the doubters, that they're still the Nuggets. They'd recently been beaten by 39 points at home by the Knicks, and stung by a three-point dagger as time ticked away against Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder in another clutch loss. Houston presented a size problem for the smaller Nuggets, but they answered the critics who questioned the team and their playoff chances by throttling the Rockets at home.
The Nuggets led by six at halftime but pulled away to start the third quarter and never looked back, scoring 40 in the quarter, and outscoring the Rockets by 30 in the second half of the 129-93 win. It was only the fourth time all season that the Nuggets had held an opponent under 100 points.
The Nuggets played good defense -- and it feels good to say that for once. The Nuggets had 12 steals, five from Nikola Jokic in the first half, and they were able to hold Houston to just four made threes on 33 attempts, a 12% three-point average. The Rockets didn't help themselves, either, shooting only 5-14 from the free-throw line.
The Nuggets shot lights out in the dominant win
The Nuggets didn't have to solely rely on the Joker or Jamal Murray in this one, though they still played great. It was a well-rounded team effort as six players had more than 12 points, led by Murray with 30. Christian Braun had 19, and Cam Johnson, who has been on a bit of a slide of his own, had his best game since he returned from an ankle injury, scoring 17 points.
As a team, the Nuggets shot 55% from the floor and made 17 of 32 three-pointers, for 53%. It was a game more reminiscent of the first half of the season when Denver was averaging closer to 125 points per game.
The Joker had another three-quarters triple-double
For the 83rd time in his career, Jokic had a triple-double in three quarters of play. He finished the night with a typical 16 points, 12 rebounds, 13 assists, and the five steals mentioned earlier.
He did have five of the Nuggets six turnovers in the first half, but committed none in the Nuggets 40-point third quarter. Jokic shot 50%, which is lower than we're used to, but a marked improvement over his struggles from a couple of weeks ago, and he's now had three straight games over 50%.
The Nuggets travel to San Antonio for a matchup with the Alien, Victor Wembanyama, in what is sure to be a difficult test for the Nuggets' defense. Wemby is having an incredible season and has led the Spurs to a 17-1 record in their last 18 games. And he was just tagged as the successor to the Joker's crown as the best basketball player in the world, too.