The highlight reel won’t show Michael Malone’s technical foul, or Nikola Jokic‘s sixth personal foul (read about both here) that brought the game within one, but it does show Darrell Arthur‘s touch foul that gave the Hawks a pair of free throws and the game. The Nuggets led by eight points with 1:43 remaining in the game, but couldn’t score again, and Atlanta squeaked by with a 109-108 win on the back of those aforementioned fouls.
Jokic and Gary Harris hooked up on a pretty no-look pass from the big man, one of his game-high six assists. Jokic was the only starter not in double-figures, but his sixth and final foul helped give Atlanta a look a the win. Wilson Chandler, who scored 19 on the night, missed a pair of shots in Denver’s final two possessions .
Dennis Schroder led the scoring for Atlanta with 27. Paul Millsap had 20, including the game-winning free throws. All nine of Atlanta’s final nine points came at the free-throw line.
The Nuggets snapped a three-game home winning streak with the loss, falling to 6-8 at home. Denver is 12-18 overall, but just a game out of the eighth spot in the west. They’ll rest over the Christmas holiday before traveling to Los Angeles for the Clippers on Monday.
