The Denver Nuggets defeated the Boston Celtics, 119 - 99, at Pepsi Center on Friday night. The Nuggets (30 - 35) were buoyed by the somewhat surprising active statuses of Nikola Jokic (illness) and Danilo Gallinari (vertigo), and both players proved pivotal to the win. Each eclipsed the 20 - point mark on the night, leading Denver to a stellar 53 percent success rate from the field. That helped them overcome 18 turnovers, as did their defense, which forced the same amount from the Celtics (41 - 25). The Nuggets also won the rebounding battle handily, outperforming Boston by a 49 - 33 margin down low. The Celtics were paced by Isaiah Thomas, who tallied 21 points, five assists, two rebounds and one steal. Avery Bradley posted 16 points, two rebounds, two assists and three steals. Al Horford generated 15 points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal. Jaylen Brown led the second unit with 14 points, two boards and one assist. Marcus Smart was productive in a reserve role as well, generating a typically full stat line of 13 points, seven rebounds, two assists and one steal. Wilson Chandler led the way for the Nuggets with 23 points, eight rebounds, one assist, one steal and one block. Jokic turned in a 21 - point, 10 - rebound double that also included seven assists, four steals and one block. Gallinari went for 20 points, five boards, one assist and two steals. Gary Harris and Jameer Nelson combined for only 17 points, and Jameer Nelson led the bench with 13 points and three rebounds. The Celtics return home to tangle with the Chicago Bulls on Sunday afternoon, while the Nuggets hit the road and face off with the Sacramento Kings on Saturday night.
["TeamStat(G,'Nuggets') has 53 Percentage of field goals ,has 35 Losses ,has 119 Total points ,has 18 Turnovers ,has 30 Wins ."
 "TeamStat(G,'Celtics') has 25 Percentage of field goals ,has 99 Losses ,has 18 Total points ,has 41 Turnovers ."]