The defending champions fell on the road to the LA Clippers for the first time since 2020.

The Denver Nuggets lost to the Clippers, 111-102, on Wednesday night. Denver had won 11 of their previous 12 games against LA before the loss. The loss dropped Denver down to 14-8 on the season, tied for the second-best record in the Western Conference. Denver is now 5-8 on the road.

“We just weren’t good enough. I wasn’t good enough tonight, and we as a team weren’t good enough tonight,” said head coach Michael Malone. “Just got to go home and get ready for Houston on Friday night.

Jamal Murray paced the Nuggets with 23 points on 10-of-18 shooting to go with 6 assists. This was Murray’s first game since November 29 after missing time with an ankle sprain.“I thought he was great in his return,” said Malone. “23, 6, and only one turnover.”

Nikola Jokić finished with his ninth triple-double of the year: 22 points, 15 rebounds, and 10 assists.

The Clippers were led by Paul George, who put up 25 points on 8-of-20 shooting and 8 rebounds.

Both teams posted similar efficiency from the floor and from the three-point line. The rebounding battle was decently even, as well. However, this game was lost at the free-throw line. The Clippers took 25 free throw attempts and made 19 of them. Denver, meanwhile, took only 9 free throws and made 8.

Michael Porter Jr. was on a heater to begin the first quarter. He finished with 11 points on a perfect 4-of-4 shooting line. The Nuggets as a team made 14-of-24 shots and entered the second quarter with a 36-21 lead.

The wheels fell off when Denver’s reserves checked in to start the second. The Clippers went a perfect 6-of-6 from behind the arc and eventually tied the ballgame at 46 apiece halfway through the period. In the end, LA outscored Denver, 40-21, and entered the second half with a 61-57 lead.

The Nuggets had a nice start to the second half. Murray and Porter Jr. both found a rhythm on jump shots and turned the deficit into a 7-point swing. Both teams hung fairly close, but Denver entered the fourth quarter with an 82-79 lead.

Russell Westbrook came alive in the fourth on a couple of layups. Reggie Jackson and DeAndre Jordan punched back on some crafty pick-and-roll plays. However, at about the 4-minute mark in the period, James Harden and Kawhi Leonard hit some huge jump shots. This allowed LA to build a 10-point lead, a lead they never looked back on.