The Denver Nuggets defeated the New York Knicks, 113-99, at Madison Square Garden on Saturday afternoon.

The Nuggets (11-11) and the Knicks (11-12) have been hovering around the .500 mark all season long and as expected, they played a tight contest where neither team was able to dominate, at least in the early going. The first quarter saw Denver establishing their terms and conditions, however, and they grabbed a 30-25 lead after the first 12 minutes of play. The Nuggets took advantage of the momentum of the first quarter and also won the second (30-24) and third (32-22) quarters, building an impressive 19-point lead with only 12 minutes left to play. New York won the final quarter by a 28-21 score, but that was not enough to mount a potential comeback and the Nuggets ended winning the game with absolute ease.

Nikola Jokic was the best player for Denver and finished with 32 points and 11 rebounds, while Will Barton contributed 13 points, six rebounds and six assists. Jeff Green had another strong performance and finished with 11 points, five rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks. Zeke Nnaji had the best game of his young career, as he poured in 21 points and eight rebounds across 34 minutes coming off the bench.

Julius Randle led the way for the Knicks with 24 points, eight assists and seven rebounds, while Evan Fournier ended with 15 points, five assists and three rebounds. Alec Burks notched 11 points and two steals, while R.J. Barrett posted 13 points. Derrick Rose finished with 11 points coming off the bench, and he also added four rebounds and four assists.