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Nikola Jokic wins the game with a clutch block against Zion Williamson
On Wednesday, the No.4 Denver Nuggets faced the No.11 New Orleans Pelicans at Ballpark. The New Orleans Pelicans needed the win to qualify for the play-in tournament, while the Denver Nuggets needed another victory.
The Nuggets got off to a fast start against the Pelicans, jumping out to a 10-point lead early on, and Jokic finished strong, leading to a win.
The Nuggets have an early lead over the Pelicans
Denver started the game on a 12-2 run after Gordan dunked on Jokic’s pass.
On the next possession, Jokic made a layup. The Pelicans’ only scorer was Ingram, who trimmed the advantage to two points.
However, the Nuggets quickly responded with 8 baskets, creating a 10-point lead less than 2 minutes into the game.
The Pelicans trailed the Nuggets for the rest of the quarter, finishing 10-points behind entering the second quarter.
In the first quarter, New Orleans shot 10 of 21 from the field.
Denver shot 13 of 22 from the field.
The Pelicans began the second quarter with Zion making a 2-point shot.
But, in response to Zion’s shot, Javale went on a 6-0 run.
With 10:23 left in the quarter, the advantage had grown to 14 points.
With 5:45 left in the first, Ingram’s pass to Steven Adams sparked a 7-0 run for the Pelicans, cutting the advantage to 5-points.
The Nuggets increased their lead to ten points after Michael Porter Jr. intercepted an Ingram pass and scored on the other end.
The Nuggets led by 9 points going into the second half.
The Nuggets maintained their advantage over the Pelicans in the third quarter, despite the Pelicans trimming the margin to five points at times.
With 55.1 seconds remaining in the third quarter, the Nuggets led by 12 points.
Naji Marshall’s alley-oop to Jaxon Hayes narrowed the lead to nine points at the end of the third quarter, 78-87.
In the fourth quarter, Zion Williamson came close to tying the game
The Pelicans went on a scoring spree in the fourth quarter, scoring 34 points while the Nuggets only scored 27.
At the start of the quarter, they had narrowed the nine-point deficit to two points.
With 5:27 remaining in the quarter and again with 3:16 remaining, the Nuggets took a 13-point advantage.
The Pelicans, however, trimmed the margin to three points with 25.3 seconds remaining in the game.
With 9.9 seconds remaining, Ingram scored a three-pointer to pull within 112-114.
At 4.2 seconds remaining, Zion Williamson almost made it to the hoop to tie the game, but Nikola Jokic made a clutch block to end the game and give the Nuggets the win.
Even while the block earned the Nuggets the victory, it raised the question of whether Jokic committed a foul when blocking the jumper.
Giving the Pelicans a chance to tie the game at the free-throw line.
However, the call was not made, and the Pelicans lost the game.
Zion appeared unconcerned with the no-foul call
ZION SAID, “I HAVE TO EARN MY RESPECT.” “I’m only in my second year.”
“I need to get a couple more years under my belt,” he added, “and maybe, things will change with that.”
Williamson also stated that blunders prior to the final sequence lost the Pelicans in the game.
“I just didn’t play a very normal, typical game for me,” Williamson explained. “I was really pushing the topic.
Similarly, he admitted, “I was a little out of character tonight.”
“I simply have to learn from this game and get better,” he added.
Finally, he commended Denver’s performance.
“I assume it was simply little details,” Williamson added.
“Denver was particularly focused on the minor stuff tonight, and they capitalized on all of them.”
That explains our high turnover rate.”
The game-winning block by Nikola Jokic
Nikola Jokic performed well throughout the game, but his performance towards the end stood out the most, both positively and negatively.
The block he made at the end against Zion sparked debate because he was not called for a foul at the time.
Although the early replays appeared to show a clean block, different views of the play revealed a definite foul under the rim.
At the end of the game, the Nuggets almost blew their victory over the Pelicans.
However, Jokic’s massive block in the waning seconds of the game rescues the day for them.
For three quarters, the Denver Nuggets dominated the New Orleans Pelicans, but at the end of the fourth quarter, they had blown a 10-point lead and were only two points ahead.
Jokic had a tremendous block at the rim, preventing Zion Williamson from scoring for the Pelicans.
The Nuggets’ PJ Dozier then scooped up the ball after the block and earned a foul with less than one second remaining.
Despite the fact that he missed both of his free shots, the Pelicans did not have enough time to obtain a good look.
The Nuggets escaped with a two-point victory.
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The game’s scoreboard
Brandon Ingram led the way for the Pelicans with 27 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists.
Similarly, Zion Williamson had 21 points, while Eric Bledsoe had 17 points, 3 rebounds, and 4 assists.
Meanwhile, with 16 points, 12 rebounds, and 12 assists, he recorded a massive triple-double.
Nikola Jokic, on the other hand, scored 32 points with 8 assists and 7 rebounds to secure the victory.
Following Jokic, Michael Porter Jr. scored 28 points and grabbed 8 rebounds.
For the win, Facundo Campazzo had a double-double of 19 points and 10 assists.
Aaron Gordan had 10 points and 5 assists.
The Pelicans will play the Oklahoma City Thunder tomorrow, while the Denver Nuggets will play the Toronto Raptors.
