Nikola Jokic scores team-high 27 points, leading the Nuggets past the Jazz 129-103

DENVER (AP) — Nikola Jokic scored 27 points and Michael Porter Jr. had 20 as the Denver Nuggets used a third-quarter offensive surge to beat the Utah Jazz 129-103 on Saturday night for their first home win of the season.

Julian Strawther added 19 points and Christian Braun 17 for the Nuggets, who sent the winless Jazz to their sixth consecutive loss to start the season. Jokic also had 16 rebounds and nine assists.

Utah was led by Walker Kessler with 18 points and 14 rebounds and Johnny Juzang with 17 points.

Both teams were dealing with injuries. Russell Westbrook started in place of Nuggets star Jamal Murray, who remained in concussion protocol after suffering a head injury in a collision with Julius Randle at Minnesota on Friday.

Utah has been leaning on rookies Cody Williams and Kyle Filipowski, who were in the starting lineup, in the absence of Lauri Markkanen (back spasms) and Taylor Hendricks (broken leg).

Utah committed 24 turnovers that the Nuggets turned into 39 points.

Takeaways

Jazz: Utah kept it fairly close in the first half but wore down in the third quarter, when it fell behind by 24 points.

Nuggets: Denver began its home campaign with losses to the Thunder and the Clippers before defeating Utah. The victory was in keeping with their home record against sub-.500 teams at home last season, when they were 15-0.

Key moment

Utah fought back from a 17-point first-quarter deficit to tie the game at 42-all midway through the second quarter. But Denver responded with a 14-0 run that featured 3-pointers by Braun and Porter, helping the Nuggets go on top 65-56 at halftime.

Key stat

Jokic scored 18 of his 27 points in the third quarter, helping the Nuggets outscore the Jazz 34-19.

Up next

The Jazz continue their four-game road trip Monday night in Chicago while the Nuggets host the Toronto Raptors on Monday night.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Dennis Georgatos, The Associated Press