Dallas Mavericks (16-9, third in the Western Conference) vs. Denver Nuggets (17-10, fourth in the Western Conference)
Denver; Monday, 9 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Dallas visits the Denver Nuggets after Luka Doncic scored 40 points in the Mavericks' 131-120 win against the Portland Trail Blazers.
The Nuggets have gone 12-8 against Western Conference opponents. Denver is seventh in the league giving up only 110.8 points per game while holding opponents to 46.2% shooting.
The Mavericks are 11-7 in Western Conference play. Dallas is 2-0 in one-possession games.
The Nuggets are shooting 48.7% from the field this season, 0.4 percentage points higher than the 48.3% the Mavericks allow to opponents. The Mavericks average 15.9 made 3-pointers per game this season, 4.8 more made shots on average than the 11.1 per game the Nuggets allow.
The two teams square off for the second time this season. The Nuggets defeated the Mavericks 125-114 in their last matchup on Nov. 4. Nikola Jokic led the Nuggets with 33 points, and Doncic led the Mavericks with 34 points.
TOP PERFORMERS: Jokic is scoring 27.0 points per game with 12.4 rebounds and 9.5 assists for the Nuggets. Reggie Jackson is averaging 16.5 points and 2.0 rebounds while shooting 50.4% over the last 10 games for Denver.
Doncic is scoring 32.7 points per game with 8.3 rebounds and 9.1 assists for the Mavericks. Tim Hardaway Jr. is averaging 12.7 points and 2.5 rebounds while shooting 39.4% over the last 10 games for Dallas.
LAST 10 GAMES: Nuggets: 6-4, averaging 117.5 points, 45.3 rebounds, 30.7 assists, 7.1 steals and 4.7 blocks per game while shooting 48.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 113.4 points per game.
Mavericks: 6-4, averaging 117.4 points, 41.3 rebounds, 26.1 assists, 7.2 steals and 5.4 blocks per game while shooting 47.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 114.2 points.
INJURIES: Nuggets: Vlatko Cancar: out (knee), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope: out (concussion).
Mavericks: Richaun Holmes: out (illness), Josh Green: out (elbow), Maxi Kleber: out (toe), Kyrie Irving: out (heel).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
The Associated Press
