Nuggets survive furious rally to beat Pacers in Mexico City

Bennett Durando, The Denver Post on Nov 7, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

MEXICO CITY — Aaron Gordon opened the festivities with a surprisingly smooth display of Spanish language chops. The ending wasn’t nearly as smooth for the Nuggets, but they held off a frisky if depleted Pacers team Saturday, winning, 114-102, in Mexico City.

“Vamos Nuggets. Viva Mexico,” Gordon announced to an Arena CDMX crowd that skewed in Denver’s favor before opening tip.

Part of that audience converted as the Pacers mounted a furious second-half comeback from 27 down. But the closest they got in the fourth quarter was within seven. Denver (5-3) absorbed their best punch and had just enough counters to start a four-game road trip strong.

Nikola Jokic overcame an inefficient shooting performance to lead Denver’s balanced scoring with 19 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists. Cam Johnson added 18 points on 8-for-12 shooting. DeMar DeRozan (11 points, five assists) and Spencer Jones (13 points, six rebounds) provided major contributions off the bench.

It was enough for the Nuggets’ dominant first half to prevail as the story of the game.

They fell behind 5-0 but got rolling with a Jokic-to-Gordon alley-oop, igniting a 14-2 run highlighted by defensive playmaking and transition offense. Jump shots weren’t falling for anyone, but Johnson, Jamal Murray and Christian Braun each scored on fast breaks. Spencer Jones subbed in to make his season debut — he missed the first seven games with a lingering hamstring injury — and blocked a layup off the backboard on his first possession.

Jokic was off-target on some interior shots that are usually automatic for him, but he gave himself room for error by cleaning up his misses or drawing fouls. Denver grinded out a 27-19 first quarter. Then the second unit went to work. Cam Johnson staggered with the bench for a consecutive game instead of Gordon. Jones rejoined the lineup and was money from the corner. DeMar DeRozan, back in the rotation after sitting out Wednesday with back spasms, bombarded Indiana with tough midrange shots and moved the ball effectively when needed. Marvin Bagley III was forceful inside, scoring eight first-half points. Tyus Jones played a simple and clean game.

The Nuggets extended their lead from 8 to 19 before any other starters checked back in. Even with Jokic, Murray, Gordon and Braun combining to shoot 10 for 29 from the field in the first half, they managed to take a 64-41 lead into the break. They committed zero turnovers in the half and scored 30 of their points in the paint.

David Adelman even broke his own rule, playing an 11-man rotation the half. He threw Bryce Hopkins into the game late in the second quarter, perhaps rewarding the rookie wing for his 18-point performance Wednesday in DeRozan’s absence. In his three-minute stint, Hopkins kept up his high energy and slashed from the baseline for a tough and-one.

Indiana struggled with shot creation and overall organization without point guard Tyrese Haliburton, who was out with a hamstring strain despite being marketed alongside Jokic as the game’s marquee stars.

Braden Smith started at point guard for Haliburton. He was held scoreless in 11 minutes, prompting Rick Carlisle to look for other options. Braun guarded Andrew Nembhard, who never established a rhythm, while Gordon traded body blows with Pascal Siakam, Indiana’s best player sans Haliburton.

The Pacers finally trimmed into Denver’s lead a few minutes after halftime. Nembhard and Aaron Nesmith connected on three straight 3-pointers for a 9-0 run, getting back within 12 in a blink. Jokic answered with two buckets in the post to restore order temporarily, but Indiana suddenly found a pulse from the perimeter. Backup big Larry Nance Jr. started raining 3s. Obi Toppin banked in a circus shot from deep. Indiana narrowed it to 10 again before DeRozan hit an 18-footer to enter the fourth quarter up 90-78. Non-Jokic minutes suddenly loomed as a threat again, despite their earlier success.

DeRozan and Murray delivered with timely scoring and playmaking. A couple of possessions after DeRozan wriggled into the midrange for another tough bucket, he drew a crowd and found a wide-open Johnson for three. Murray found a cutting Jones underneath the basket for a desperately needed answer after Indiana had cut it to 102-95.

The Nuggets could breathe a sigh of relief. The Mexico City journey ended successfully, on and off the court.

“I love history. This is such a deep history of this place,” Adelman said. “Just (for) the Americas in general, this is a place you need to go to if you’re from here. … You can just see a lot of what the world was and is in one place. I think that’s important. When you’re in the NBA, you’re really lucky. You get all of these opportunities and all of these things. I’ve been blessed to do camps in Europe and South America and all over the place. So you feel very lucky to come to places like this.”