Nuggets rally from down 23 points to beat Hawks, extend road winning streak

ATLANTA Rarely have these Nuggets faced the specific form of adversity they encountered Friday night when the Hawks threatened to run them out of the gym They handled the challenge with a - fourth-quarter run and a - triumph over Atlanta extending their franchise-record road winning streak to nine games On a roller coaster night of -point shooting variance that featured a dramatic -point comeback and a near-disastrous -point blown lead late Jamal Murray made the game-winning plays at the defensive end He stripped Kristaps Porzingis as the Hawks center rolled to the basket forcing a turnover with seconds left and Denver protecting a - lead Then after Nikola Jokic missed a free throw to keep Atlanta within one possession Murray blocked his countryman Nickeil Alexander-Walker on a game-tying -point attempt Alexander-Walker recovered drove for a layup with two seconds left but Jokic fired a quick inbound pass ahead to Murray who was able to run out the clock Jokic overcame one of his worst halves of the season to finish with points nine rebounds and eight assists But he was content not to be Denver s hero He watched from the bench with delight as Murray and Cam Johnson staggered with the second unit and carried the decisive - run early in the fourth The Nuggets - outscored their hosts by in minutes without Jokic They held Atlanta scoreless for almost five minutes of competition time while flipping a - deficit into a - lead The Hawks missed seven straight shots and committed three turnovers during the drought while Denver generated open -point looks one after another Backup center Jonas Valanciunas was a team-best plus- Johnson was not far behind and made four s including a deep one to tie during the onslaught Murray amassed a -point -assist double-double and improved to of from -point range in the first two games of this road trip The Nuggets will visit Charlotte for a matinee on Sunday The Hawks were led by Jalen Johnson who has stepped up with Trae Young injured He recorded a triple-double by halftime and finished with points rebounds and assists Related Articles Nuggets Journal For first time in Nikola Jokic s prime Denver doesn t look convincing in clutch Nikola Jokic on mission to draw -shot continuation foul I m in a shooting motion Nuggets Nikola Jokic named NBA Western Conference Participant of the Month Nuggets Nikola Jokic in unfamiliar territory with -game home losing streak Anthony Davis has points as Mavericks beat Nuggets - That Denver ended up shooting a higher clip than Atlanta outside the arc would ve seemed impossible for bulk of the first half Twenty-three was the Nuggets largest deficit of the season as the Hawks made of its their shots and eight of their first triples Jokic and company couldn t buy a bucket At one point in the first quarter the Hawks were averaging points per field goal attempt to Denver s Jokic rebounded from a -for- half by scoring points in the third quarter Just as importantly he provided a spark by protecting the rim as Denver turned defense into offense to fuel its comeback Want more Nuggets news Sign up for the Nuggets Insider to get all our NBA analysis