Atlanta Hawks (36-41, in the Eastern Conference) vs. Denver Nuggets (53-23, in the Western Conference)
Denver; Saturday, 9 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: Denver hosts the Atlanta Hawks after Nikola Jokic scored 42 points in the Denver Nuggets' 110-105 win against the San Antonio Spurs.
The Nuggets are 31-8 on their home court. Denver ranks sixth in the league giving up just 109.8 points per game while holding opponents to 46.4% shooting.
The Hawks are 15-23 on the road. Atlanta ranks sixth in the league averaging 13.8 made 3-pointers per game while shooting 36.7% from deep. Bogdan Bogdanovic leads the team averaging 3.1 makes while shooting 37.2% from 3-point range.
The Nuggets average 11.5 made 3-pointers per game this season, 2.3 fewer makes per game than the Hawks allow (13.8). The Hawks average 13.8 made 3-pointers per game this season, 2.6 more made shots on average than the 11.2 per game the Nuggets allow.
The two teams square off for the second time this season. The Nuggets defeated the Hawks 129-122 in their last meeting on Dec. 12. Jamal Murray led the Nuggets with 29 points, and Bogdanovic led the Hawks with 40 points.
TOP PERFORMERS: Aaron Gordon is scoring 13.9 points per game and averaging 6.5 rebounds for the Nuggets. Jokic is averaging 26.3 points and 11.2 rebounds over the last 10 games.
Dejounte Murray is scoring 22.6 points per game and averaging 5.3 rebounds for the Hawks. Garrison Mathews is averaging 2.2 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Nuggets: 7-3, averaging 112.7 points, 45.4 rebounds, 30.0 assists, 7.5 steals and 5.1 blocks per game while shooting 48.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 106.0 points per game.
Hawks: 6-4, averaging 115.7 points, 44.7 rebounds, 28.6 assists, 7.5 steals and 4.8 blocks per game while shooting 48.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 114.6 points.
INJURIES: Nuggets: None listed.
Hawks: None listed.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
The Associated Press
