WHO: Denver Nuggets (46-27, third in the Western Conference during the regular season) vs. Utah Jazz (44-28, sixth in the Western Conference during the regular season)
WHAT: Western Conference first round, series tied 1-1
WHEN: 2 p.m. Friday (Altitude, TNT, KIUP 930 AM, 97.3, 106.3 FM)
WHERE: Lake Buena Vista, Florida
LINE: Nuggets -1.5; over/under is 218.5
BOTTOM LINE: The Denver Nuggets take on the Utah Jazz for game three of the Western Conference first round with the series tied 1-1. The Jazz won the previous meeting 124-105. Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points to help lead Utah to the win and Nikola Jokic scored 28 points in defeat for Denver.
The Jazz are 24-21 against conference opponents. Utah has a 31-10 record against teams under .500.
The Nuggets are 29-16 in conference play. Denver scores 111.3 points and has outscored opponents by 2.1 points per game.
TOP PERFORMERS: Rudy Gobert is scoring 15.1 points per game and averaging 13.5 rebounds for the Jazz. Mitchell is averaging 21.7 points and 3.8 rebounds while shooting 38.1% over the last 10 games for Utah.
Jokic leads the Nuggets with 9.7 rebounds and averages 19.9 points. Michael Porter Jr. is averaging 19.5 points and 7.4 rebounds over the last 10 games for Denver.
Jazz: 4-6, averaging 115.6 points, 43.5 rebounds, 24.6 assists, 7.2 steals and 4.7 blocks per game while shooting 45.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 117.2 points on 49.4% shooting.
Nuggets: 4-6, averaging 118.8 points, 42.6 rebounds, 27.3 assists, 6.8 steals and 4.5 blocks per game while shooting 49.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 123.5 points on 49.7% shooting.
Jazz: Mike Conley: out (personal), Ed Davis: out (knee).
Nuggets: Vlatko Cancar: out (foot), Will Barton: out (knee), Gary Harris: out (hip).
Associated Press
