The Utah Jazz defeated the Denver Nuggets, 105 - 98, at Vivint Smart Home Arena on Saturday. Despite the final scoreline being close, the Jazz were in control for the majority of the game. The third quarter was when Utah made their mark, as they outscored the Nuggets, 33 - 16. Denver did all they could to fight back in the fourth though, as they scored 35 points and pulled the game within four points before losing by seven. Free-throw shooting was the key for Utah, as they went 26 - of - 28 from the charity stripe. Three-point shooting kept the Nuggets hanging around, as they went 13 - of - 24 in the defeat and made 7 - of - 7 at one point in the fourth. Denver (7 - 13) have been struggling recently and they looked lost at times in this defeat. Wilson Chandler once again led the team in scoring, as he tallied 20 points, five rebounds and three assists off the bench. Will Barton matched that team - leading 20 points, as he added five rebounds and four assists. Jameer Nelson was a nice spark off the bench as well, accumulating 13 points, four rebounds and seven assists. On deck for the Nuggets is a matchup against the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday. Utah (12 - 9) had to play this game extremely shorthanded, but they were still able to prevail with a win. Gordon Hayward was the catalyst, as he scored a game - high 32 points. Rodney Hood was second on the team, as he scored 15 points on an inefficient 4 - of - 14 shooting. Rudy Gobert was a presence down low, as he totaled seven points, 11 rebounds and two blocks. Utah will face the Los Angeles Lakers on the road for their next game on Monday.
["TeamStat(G,'Jazz') has 9 Losses ,has 105 Total points ,has 33 Points in 3rd quarter ,has 12 Points in 4th quarter ."
 "TeamStat(G,'Nuggets') has 13 Losses ,has 98 Total points ,has 16 Points in 3rd quarter ,has 35 Points in 4th quarter ,has 7 Wins ."]