Peyton Watson scored 24 points and added eight rebounds on Wednesday night and the injury-depleted Denver Nuggets defeated the host Toronto Raptors 106-103.
Toronto’s Brandon Ingram sunk a 3-pointer that would have tied the game but a video review showed that his attempt did not beat the buzzer.
Jamal Murray added 21 points for the Nuggets, who had lost their two previous games to open a seven-game road trip. DaRon Holmes II scored 11 points and Jalen Pickett contributed 10 points as only eight Denver players saw action.
Scottie Barnes recorded his eighth career triple-double and second of the season with 20 points,14 rebounds and 10 assists for the Raptors, who had won two in a row.
Ingram added 30 points for the Raptors,
Immanuel Quickley contributed 22 points and RJ Barrett scored 17 points.
It was Denver’s first game since Nikola Jokic suffered a knee injury that is expected to keep him out at least one month.
To make matters worse, former Raptor Jonas Valanciunas limped to the dressing room with a strained right calf with 4:03 to go in the third quarter and did not return. He had 17 points and nine rebounds.
The Nuggets took a six-point lead into the fourth quarter and soon led by eight before the Raptors responded with a 10-0 run to lead by two with 9:16 to play. The game was tied at 98 following Ingram’s 3-pointer with 4:40 to play, but Murray’s driving layup put Denver ahead by three with 3:24 to go.
The Raptors cut the deficit to one point on two occasions in the final 20.2 seconds, but two made free throws by Spencer Jones and Murray’s converted layup off an in-bounds play restored the lead to three, setting up the game’s final sequence.
The Nuggets came out hustling and led 32-23 after one quarter.
Watson’s three-point play bumped the margin to 52-39 with 4:20 remaining in the second quarter. Toronto trailed by six after Barrett’s running layup with 2:42 left, but Denver maintained a 63-54 halftime lead.
There were wide swings of momentum in the third quarter. Barrett made a 3-pointer and then swished an eight-foot floater to give Toronto a 68-64 lead with 8:40 to play in the stanza. But Hardaway’s 3-pointer put Denver ahead by one with 5:24 left and the Nuggets finished the third quarter with a 7-0 burst to lead 85-79.
The Raptors attempts 20 more field goals than the Nuggets, but only made 37 of 100. Denver was 34 of 80 (42.5%), but knocked down 11 more free throws (28-17) than Toronto.
