Nikola Jokić leads Nuggets rally late to knock off Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Thunder and split series

Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets got their revenge on Monday night.

After dropping the front end of the back-to-back series Sunday night, the Nuggets rallied in the fourth quarter to grab a 140-127 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Paycom Center on Monday. The win followed a 24-point loss the night before, when the Nuggets were outscored by 21 points in the fourth quarter and allowed Thunder star and MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to put up yet another 40 point game.

Though the first half of the game was a battle once again, the Nuggets flew ahead late this time. They rallied out of a small six-point hole at halftime and took a slight lead into the final quarter. They then opened the period on a 24-12 tear to break open a 14-point lead, which was their largest of the game at the time. From there, Denver simply held on the rest of the way to grab the 13-ponit win without much of an issue.

Jokić finished just shy of a triple-double for the Nuggets. He finished with 35 points, 18 rebounds and eight assists. Jamal Murray added 34 points, and Michael Porter Jr. finished with 17 points. The Nuggets shot better than 60% from the field and better than 56% from behind the arc. All but two players who saw the court hit double figures, too.

The win pushed Denver to 42-23 on the season. It also improved the Nuggets to 12-1 on the season in the second leg of back-to-back games.

Lou Dort led the Thunder with 26 points and seven rebounds after he drained a career-high eight 3-pointers in the loss, which snapped a seven-game win streak. Gilgeous-Alexander added 25 points and seven assists, and Isaiah Hartenstein finished with 20 points. The Thunder lost Jalen Williams in the first half to a right hip strain. Further specifics on his injury are not yet known.

Despite the loss, Oklahoma City is still very much in control in the Western Conference. The Thunder hold a 53-12 record, which is still more than 10 games ahead of the Nuggets in the conference standings. Only the Cleveland Cavaliers have a better record in the league as a whole, too.

But if this two-game clash is any indication, a matchup between Jokić and Gilgeous-Alexander come playoff time would be a very entertaining series.