Denver's 114–102 win over Indiana in Mexico City on Saturday was built on a first-half avalanche, but it was the Nuggets' response to a late Pacers push that made the result convincing. Nikola Jokić finished with 19 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists as Denver claimed its fourth victory in five games. Indiana, meanwhile, has now lost six of its past seven. The NBA's final game record tells the story of a lead that looked enormous, then suddenly wasn't.
Denver outscored Indiana 37–22 in the second quarter to take a 64–41 advantage into half-time. The decisive stretch came when the Pacers went four minutes without scoring and the Nuggets piled on 15 unanswered points. Jamal Murray's jumper eventually stretched the margin to 27. It wasn't a one-man scoring show: Jokić supplied the early structure, while Cameron Johnson's 18 points and Murray's 16 gave Denver enough production around him to keep the defence occupied.
Indiana's third-quarter fightback made this more than a routine wire-to-wire cruise. The Pacers won that period 37–26, with Aaron Nesmith hitting consecutive threes during the recovery. Jarace Walker then brought them within 102–95 on a three-pointer with 7:26 remaining. A seven-point game after trailing by 27 is a remarkable swing, but the Nuggets immediately answered with six straight points. That response, visible in the official play-by-play, was the difference between surviving a comeback and letting it become a collapse.
The most revealing contrast wasn't three-point accuracy. Indiana actually made 15 threes to Denver's 10, yet lost by 12. Denver attempted 19 free throws and converted 16; Indiana reached the line only seven times and made five. The Nuggets also committed just three player turnovers against Indiana's 10. Those extra possessions and points at the stripe helped offset a cold 10-for-35 Denver night from deep. It's a useful reminder that a team can lose the perimeter battle and still control the scoring economy.
Jokić's 19 points came on 7-for-20 shooting, hardly his sharpest finishing night, but the 13 rebounds and eight assists underline how many ways he influenced the contest. He didn't need a 30-point performance to anchor the attack. Johnson shot 8-for-12 for his 18, and Denver had scoring contributions throughout its rotation. The game recap and team statistics also show how Indiana's 23-point leading scorer, Pascal Siakam, was left chasing a gap that grew too large before the break.
For Indiana, there was genuine substance in the rally. Siakam scored 23, Larry Nance Jr. contributed 15 from the bench, and the Pacers kept shooting their way back into contention. But the opening-half drought and the inability to generate free throws left them needing an almost flawless finish. Tyrese Haliburton's absence with a hamstring issue mattered to the available playmaking options, though the bigger immediate problem was allowing Denver to build such a commanding cushion.
Denver leaves Mexico City with another win and a clearer example of its resilience: a side that can build a huge lead, absorb an opponent's best response and still execute when the game tightens. Indiana's recovery showed fight, but the Nuggets' six-point answer in the fourth quarter was the sequence that counted. The Pacers head to Dallas next; Denver heads to Houston with a fourth win from five and an offence that found enough answers even without its best three-point shooting.
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