Nuggets 123, Rockets 116
Randy Foye hit six 3-pointers en route to 30 points and added 15 assists as host Denver snapped Houston’s three-game winning streak.
Kenneth Faried recorded 23 points and nine rebounds and Timofey Mozgov scored 22 for the Nuggets. Evan Fournier added 14 points off the bench and Aaron Brooks contributed 13 points and seven assists for Denver against his former team.
Jeremy Lin scored 18 points but James Harden struggled to 10 on 1-of-9 shooting as the Rockets’ magic number to clinch homecourt advantage in the Western Conference playoffs remained at two. Chandler Parsons scored 16 points and Omer Asik collected 12 points and 12 rebounds for Houston.
The Nuggets held a 110-88 lead after Quincy Miller’s basket with 11:22 left but the Rockets started to chip away behind their reserves as Troy Daniels got hot from beyond the arc and cut it to 118-112 when his fourth 3-pointer of the period splashed through with three minutes remaining. Houston drew within four points with 2:24 left but Foye hit a shot and Fournier buried a 3-pointer to stretch it back out.
The Rockets put up an NBA season-high 145 points in a win at the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday but struggled out of the gate against Denver as the Nuggets jumped out to a 23-8 lead and were up 12 at the end of the first quarter. Houston found its form with 40 points in the second quarter but Denver kept pace to go into the break up 68-58 before ending the third quarter with an 11-2 run to make it a 17-point cushion.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Foye’s 178 3-pointers on the season marks a career high. … The Nuggets improved to 21-18 at home, clinching an 11th consecutive winning season in their own building. … Daniels (12), F Jordan Hamilton (11) and F Donatas Motiejunas (11) combined for 34 points off the bench for Houston.