Nikola Jokic and defending champion Nuggets outlast short-handed Pacers

DENVER -- With Tyrese Haliburton still out with a strained left hamstring and forward Aaron Nesmith missing with bilateral shin soreness, the Pacers fought but were ultimately subdued by the defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets, losing 117-109 at Ball Arena.

The Pacers snapped a three-game winning streak and fell to 23-16, falling back into a virtual four-way tie for fourth place in the Eastern Conference with the Cavaliers, Heat, and Knicks. Cleveland at 22-15, holds a percentage point lead over the other three teams, who are all 23-16. The Nuggets improved to 28-13, just a half-game back of Minnesota and Oklahoma City for first in the West.

Here are four observations.

Nikola Jokic, Nuggets starters pack a little too much punch

With two of their best players missing, the Pacers had to deal with arguably the best player in the world and the supporting cast around him that was obviously good enough to win the Nuggets a championship a year ago. All things considered, the Pacers handled that situation better than expected, but at the end of the day Denver had Nikola Jokic and the Pacers didn't.

Jokic committed three fouls in the first half and played just 14 minutes before the break. He scored just six points on 3 of 4 shooting but still had eight rebounds and seven assists. In the second half, he was unleashed and did what he tends to do, functioning as both a point guard and one of the best centers in the world. He got to the rim off the bounce and through post-ups and showed off his otherworldly touch around the rim. He scored 25 points on 12 of 13 shooting, grabbed 12 rebounds and dished out nine assists, just missing out on a triple-double.

As usual, the attention Jokic grabs and his absurd passing skill made life easy for his teammates. Wing Michael Porter scored 25 points with seven 3-pointers. Power forward Aaron Gordon posted 20 points on 7 of 10 shooting. Guard Jamal Murray had 25 points and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope needed just four field goal attempts to score 11 points. The Nuggets shot 64.8% from the floor and posted 1.18 points per possession, a number lowered by the fact that they turned the ball over 21 times. The five starters combined to make 42 of their 60 field goal attempts (70%) including 10 of 19 3-pointers.

"I thought we fought hard in this game and there was some frustrating parts of it," Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said. "A lot of this came down to Jokic's greatness and Murray's greatness."

The Nuggets didn't win any of the four quarters by more than three points, but they also didn't lose any of them. In the fourth, they outscored the Pacers 28-25 but made 12 of 17 field goals in the period. Jokic and Murray were a combined 8 of 10 from the field for 17 points.

"You know at the end of the game the ball is going to be in Jamal or Nikola's hand and they're going to make the right play," said guard Bruce Brown, who won a title with the Nuggets' last season. "They're gonna make the right play every time. Either it's Nikola scoring, Jamal scoring or they're going to find one of their teammates. It's tough. That starting five is one of the best in basketball."

The Pacers fought on defense and scored enough to keep it close on offense, but were hamstrung by a rough outside shooting night, hitting just 8 of 29 3-pointers.

"We had some good looks," Carlisle said. "Sometimes it comes down to make or miss. I'll look at the film, but I liked a lot of them."

Bruce Brown came to play in his return

Pacers guard Bruce Brown returned to Denver for the first time since signing with the Pacers in free agency, and the Nuggets and their fans were thrilled to welcome him back. Before they gave him his ring for his part in the the Nuggets' 2022-23 NBA title run, he was greeted with a two-minute video celebrating his time. Coach Michael Malone said in his pre-game press conference that he was thrilled that Brown turned his performance with the Nuggets into a two-year, $45 million deal with the Pacers, as that was more money than the Nuggets had available to pay him.

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Brown responded well to being back in his old home, showing the kind of versatility that made him such an important piece off the bench in last year's playoffs. In the first half, he scored 14 points on 6 of 11 shooting, grabbed seven rebounds including four on the offensive end, and dished out four assists while also taking on former teammate Jamal Murray when he was on the floor. He finished the half by dashing for a buzzer-beating layup that cut Denver's lead to 60-57 at the the break. He finished with 18 points, 10 rebounds and six assists.

"The moment when you get your championship ring is a once-in-a-lifetime type thing in most cases," Carlisle said. "The love he was getting from their players and their fans was very, very special, and to be able to jump in the game and have the kind of game he had was very special too."

Pacers effective on the glass

It's not at all easy to stop the defending champs from making shots, especially with Jokic on the floor and they aren't easy to score on. However, the Pacers kept themselves in the game thanks in large part to what they were able to do on the glass at both ends.

The Pacers lost the rebounding battle 40-37 but won in several ways that counted. They held Denver to just four offensive rebounds and six second-chance points, while on their end they managed 14 offensive rebounds and 20 second-chance points. That kept them within striking distance.

The Pacers didn't have a size advantage dealing with Jokic and power forward Aaron Gordon, but they were better at chasing down loose balls. Brown grabbed 10 rebounds. Center Isaiah Jackson had seven, and everyone who took the floor grabbed at least one.

"I think that's what kept us in the game," Jackson said.

Pacers bigs keep them in it

The Nuggets have one of the most talented frontcourts in the NBA with Jokic and Gordon, so it was hard to imagine the Pacers matching their production in the starting lineup. Still, the Pacers got plenty of production from their own bigs, and that kept them within striking distance.

Starting center Myles Turner had no problem attacking Jokic and actually put him in foul trouble in the first half. Turner scored 12 points on 5 of 11 shooting and grabbed four rebounds. Starting power forward Jalen Smith scored eight points on 4 of 7 shooting and Jackson continued his strong play off the bench with 12 points on 6 of 9 shooting to go with seven rebounds. It was Jackson's third straight game scoring in double figures.

Pacers stats vs. Nuggets

INDIANA (109): Hield 6-13 2-2 16, Smith 4-7 0-1 8, Turner 5-11 2-3 12, B.Brown 8-16 1-3 18, Nembhard 4-8 4-6 12, I.Jackson 6-9 0-0 12, Nwora 1-5 0-0 3, Toppin 4-5 0-0 11, Mathurin 3-9 5-5 12, McConnell 2-9 1-2 5. Totals 43-92 15-22 109.

DENVER (117): Gordon 7-10 6-8 20, Porter Jr. 9-15 0-0 25, Jokic 12-13 1-2 25, Caldwell-Pope 3-4 3-3 11, Murray 11-18 2-4 25, Holiday 0-0 0-0 0, Jordan 0-0 0-0 0, Braun 1-5 0-2 2, R.Jackson 3-3 3-4 9, Watson 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 46-71 15-23 117.

3-Point Goals—Indiana 8-29 (Toppin 3-3, Hield 2-9, B.Brown 1-2, Mathurin 1-3, Nwora 1-4, Nembhard 0-1, Smith 0-1, McConnell 0-2, Turner 0-4), Denver 10-20 (Porter Jr. 7-11, Caldwell-Pope 2-3, Murray 1-4, Braun 0-1, Gordon 0-1). Fouled Out_None. Rebounds_Indiana 37 (B.Brown 10), Denver 40 (Jokic 12). Assists_Indiana 27 (Nembhard 7), Denver 31 (Jokic 9). Total Fouls_Indiana 21, Denver 18. A_19,631 (19,520)has context menu