Denver Nuggets (52-28, first in the Western Conference) vs. Utah Jazz (36-44, 12th in the Western Conference)
Salt Lake City; Saturday, 3:30 p.m. EDT
FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK NBA LINE: Jazz -2.5; over/under is 25.5
BOTTOM LINE: Utah aims to stop its five-game home losing streak with a victory against Denver.
The Jazz have gone 23-27 against Western Conference opponents. Utah is fifth in the league with 45.7 rebounds led by Lauri Markkanen averaging 8.6.
The Nuggets have gone 33-17 against Western Conference opponents. Denver ranks third in the NBA scoring 55.0 points per game in the paint led by Nikola Jokic averaging 15.9.
The teams play for the fourth time this season. In the last meeting on Dec. 11 the Nuggets won 115-110 led by 31 points from Jokic, while Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 27 points for the Jazz.
TOP PERFORMERS: Walker Kessler is shooting 72.0% and averaging 9.2 points for the Jazz. Ochai Agbaji is averaging 2.4 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games for Utah.
Bruce Brown is scoring 11.4 points per game and averaging 4.1 rebounds for the Nuggets. Jeff Green is averaging 1.0 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games for Denver.
LAST 10 GAMES: Jazz: 2-8, averaging 115.8 points, 47.3 rebounds, 26.8 assists, 4.0 steals and 5.1 blocks per game while shooting 48.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 122.8 points per game.
Nuggets: 5-5, averaging 109.2 points, 42.7 rebounds, 26.5 assists, 6.9 steals and 4.6 blocks per game while shooting 48.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 109.9 points.
INJURIES: Jazz: Walker Kessler: out for season (concussion), Lauri Markkanen: out (hand), Rudy Gay: out (back), Jordan Clarkson: out (finger), Talen Horton-Tucker: out (ankle), Collin Sexton: out (hamstring).
Nuggets: Collin Gillespie: out (leg), Nikola Jokic: out (calf), Jamal Murray: out (knee), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope: out (illness), Michael Porter Jr.: 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
