Denver Nuggets 104, New Orleans Pelicans 91: a 37-point first quarter

The Denver Nuggets won this game in the first 12 minutes. They scored 37 points in the opening quarter at Smoothie King Center, held the New Orleans Pelicans to 18 and spent the rest of Wednesday night protecting the margin. The final was 104-91. New Orleans never led.

The win evened Denver at 2-2 and dropped the Pelicans to 0-4. Full prices and market history are on the game page.

How it was won

The 19-point first quarter was the separation. Denver moved the ball, scored at the rim and took a lead that eventually reached 22.

The next two quarters belonged to New Orleans. The Pelicans won the second 27-20 and the third 28-22. A 57-45 halftime edge became 79-73 going into the fourth. That is close enough to make a road favorite uncomfortable.

Denver closed it with a 25-18 fourth quarter. The Pelicans scored only 18 in the period, and 7-of-30 shooting from three for the night left them short of the runs they needed.

The box score has three main threads.

• Shooting from distance. Denver made 12 of 31 threes to New Orleans' 7 of 30. That is 15 points from three-point range. Jamal Murray made 5 of 11 by himself and led all Nuggets scorers with 23 points and 6 assists.
• The free throw line. Denver went 18 of 19. New Orleans went 16 of 22. In a game where the Pelicans outscored Denver 48-42 in the paint, those makes mattered.
• Ball movement. The Nuggets had 30 assists on 37 field goals. Nikola Jokic finished with a triple-double: 21 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists. Aaron Gordon added 15 points and 11 rebounds.

The night was not clean. Denver turned it over 18 times, and New Orleans had 19, so neither side gained much there. Rebounding was nearly level at 42-41.

Zion Williamson led New Orleans with 25 points and did most of his work inside. Derik Queen had 11 points and 12 rebounds. Jeremiah Fears scored 11 but made only 1 of 5 from three. The Pelicans shot 41 percent overall to Denver's 46.

Against the number

Denver closed as a 4.5-point favorite and won by 13, covering by 8.5 points. On the moneyline, Denver closed at -180 and New Orleans at +150.

The total was not close. The market closed at 241.5, and the teams combined for 195. The under cleared by 46.5 points.

That gap is the main thing to take from this game for pricing purposes. These teams had played a 141-135 game earlier in the season, and the closing total appears to have reflected that. This time, a cold Pelicans perimeter night and a quiet middle of the game for Denver's offense kept the score well below it.

What's next

Denver has played three more games since this one and now stands at 4-3. The Nuggets host the Indiana Pacers on Saturday, November 7, on NBA TV and DAZN IND. Through seven games, Murray's shooting and Jokic's playmaking have done most of the work. The 18 turnovers here are the area to watch.

New Orleans left this game still looking for its first win. The Pelicans' interior scoring through Williamson and Queen held up. Their perimeter shooting did not, and an 18-point first quarter at home put them in a deficit they could not overcome.