Salt Lake City, UT (SportsNetwork.com) - Ty Lawson made a go-ahead jumper with 29.6 seconds left to lead the Denver Nuggets past the Utah Jazz, 103-101, on Monday.
Lawson ended with 15 points and 12 assists for the Nuggets, who almost let a 22-point lead slip away. Wilson Chandler also scored 15 points.
"It feels good to be on the winning side of things," Denver head coach Brian Shaw said. "A close game in a hostile environment, and we had to make the plays we needed to win the game and we were able to do it and have a positive experience behind that, so we'll take it."
Denver guard Arron Afflalo had 14 points before being ejected with 5:55 to play. Darrell Arthur and Kenneth Faried tallied 12 and 11 points, respectively.
Gordon Hayward ended with 25 points for the Jazz, who have lost six in a row. Alec Burks and Enes Kanter had 22 and 17 points, respectively, with Kanter also pulling down 15 rebounds.
"I think when we defend everything the game is easier, the basket is bigger you shoot better, you play better and you're more connected," Jazz head coach Quin Snyder said. "We need to have better concentration, which leads to better effort."
Trailing 80-67, the Jazz ended the third quarter on a 10-3 run to get within six. Utah then scored the first six points of the fourth to make it 83-83.
But the Nuggets responded with a 7-0 spurt to take the lead back. Ahead 90-86, Afflalo was charged with a flagrant foul type 2, and was immediately ejected, following a hard foul on Burks. Jazz trainer Gary Briggs was given a technical foul as he ran onto the court during the fracas to attend to Burks before time was called.
Hayward made two free throws and Trey Burke connected from beyond the arc to make it 97-97 with 1:50 to go. The score remained tied following baskets from Timofey Mozgov and Hayward.
Lawson made a double-pump jumper to give Denver the lead with 29.6 seconds left. Hayward was blocked and Burke missed a potential go-ahead 3- pointer on the other end before Arthur sealed the victory with two free throws with 4.2 seconds remaining.
Denver, which led 26-23 after one quarter, started the second stanza on a 20-4 run to pull away. Arthur tallied 10 points during the burst that J.J. Hickson capped with a three-point play for a 46-27 advantage. The Nuggets led 62-43 at the half.
Game Notes
Jazz forwards Derrick Favors (flu-like symptoms) and Jeremy Evans (ankle) missed the game ... Mozgov had 10 points and 10 rebounds.
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