Nikola Jokic scored 15 of his 38 points in the fourth quarter, and the Denver Nuggets came back from an 11-point deficit in the last 6:13 to beat the Golden State Warriors 119-115 in the NBA Cup on Tuesday night.
Golden State won the West Group C with a 3-1 record and moved on to the knockout round, while Denver finished 2-2.
Jokic also had 10 rebounds, six assists, and five steals. Michael Porter Jr. scored 22 points, Aaron Gordon added 15 points, Jamal Murray had 12 points, and Christian Braun scored 11 for Denver.
The Warriors, playing without forward Draymond Green due to a calf injury, lost their fifth straight game despite 24 points and 11 assists from Stephen Curry. Jonathan Kuminga scored 19 points, and Andrew Wiggins, Brandin Podziemski, and Moses Moody each scored 13 points. Gary Payton II contributed 11 points.
It was 113-106 after Curry’s layup with 4:03 left, but Denver came back. Jokic assisted Gordon for a dunk, then hit a short jumper. Murray made two free throws, and Jokic hit an 18-foot shot to tie the game at 115.
Curry missed a 3-pointer, Gordon made two more free throws, and Murray’s steal led to Jokic making clinching foul shots.
Golden State started the fourth quarter with a 10-2 run to take a 95-92 lead. Payton, Curry, and Moody made 3-pointers around a floater by Jokic to increase the lead to 104-94.
It grew to 109-98 after Moody was fouled on a 3-pointer and made all three free throws, but Porter responded with a dunk and a 3-pointer to bring Denver within six.
The Nuggets began the second half with seven straight points, but the Warriors came back and tied it at 73. Julian Strawther’s jumper at the end of the third quarter gave Denver a 90-85 lead heading into the final period.
Both teams had hot stretches in the second quarter. Golden State, trailing 36-31, went on a 19-4 run and went ahead 54-42 with 4:57 left.
Denver then scored 12 straight points to tie the game, and the teams went into halftime tied at 57.
