Jokic is sidelined due to injury
In the blink of an eye, the Houston Rockets have suffered 11 consecutive losses, which is not uncommon for them this season. As a team that aspires to sign, the Rockets are indeed on the right path, but for the fans of the city, it should be extremely sad. Jaylen Green, while talented, wasn't amazing, not to the point of changing a team. So what the rocket can do is still a mess. In this game, the Rockets will take on the Nuggets on the road.
Facing such a team at the bottom of the West, the Nuggets naturally have an absolute advantage. However, Jokic's absence from this game, as well as the last game, they lost to the second-to-last Thunder in the West in the case of Jokic' appearance, which undoubtedly reminds the Nuggets and fans that this game can not have the slightest carelessness, otherwise the overturning of the ship in the gutter may be staged again.
Cousins started the battle
Jokic did not play, Cousins naturally came to the starting lineup, the first quarter of the game debuted, on 5 shots 4 shots to get 10 points, 2 rebounds, 1 steal 1 block data, dream back to the peak. Jeff Green also had seven points, two rebounds and one assist, and the Nuggets scored 25 points in the first quarter under the leadership of two veterans, but the Rockets exploded with 26 points, including Wood with 10 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists. After returning from the second quarter, Cousins only had one shot, got 4 points, 4 rebounds and 1 assist, and was forced to rest because he received 3 fouls, but the Nuggets still scored 26 points.
The Rockets were caught in a scoring drought, the team felt cold, Green had 6 points, 1 rebound and 2 assists on 3-of-6 shooting, and the team only scored 20 points. So at the end of the half, the Denver Nuggets beat the Rockets by five points at 51-46. In the second half, Cousins continued to show dominance, 3 of 4 shots, 2 of 2 three-pointers, 11 points, 2 rebounds and 1 steal, under his leadership, the Nuggets blasted 36 points in a single quarter, while the Rockets still only scored 24 points, and at the end of the third quarter, the Nuggets' lead had reached 17 points.
After returning from the final quarter, the Rockets tried to catch up, and Green and Martin scored consecutive goals, but the Nuggets always maintained a lead of about 15 points. Cousins kept scoring from the basket, shooting 2-of-4 in the final quarter, and then taking 6 points, 2 assists and 1 steal. Thanks to Cousins' outstanding performance, the Denver Nuggets finally defeated the Houston Rockets 116-101 at home, successfully giving their opponents a 12-game losing streak.
It only takes 23 minutes
Jokic did not play, Cousins carried the team, once again dreaming of returning to the top, showing the style of the former league's first center. The game was played with only 23 minutes and 33 seconds, but it was very efficient to shoot 10 of 14, 3 of 4 from three-point range, 8 of 9 from the free throw line, and 31 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals and 1 block. Although there were 4 turnovers and 4 fouls, they were still flawed. Under Cousins, the Nuggets scored in double figures, but the second highest scorers were Jeff Green and Jamakau Green, both with just 14 points.
As for the Houston Rockets, they suffered 12 consecutive losses and are one step closer to the goal of swinging. Wood shot 7-of-12 and had 22 points, 10 rebounds and five assists, and his offense has been fine, but the defense is really miserable. Jaylen Green shot 7-of-14 from the field with 18 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists, and Sagu also had 11 points and 10 rebounds, and the young players played very well, which was a success for the Rockets. Porter Jr. felt cold, only 9 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists on 3-of-12 shooting, and the plus-minus -13 was also the first in the team.