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Nuggets hold off Grizzlies, end 8-game skid

Jan 4, 2014 - 7:41 AM Denver, CO (SportsNetwork.com) - Ty Lawson scored 18 points and dished out 12 assists to help the Denver Nuggets snap an eight-game skid with a 111-108 win over the Memphis Grizzlies at Pepsi Center.

Kenneth Faried and Timofey Mozgov added 16 points apiece and Nate Robinson chipped in 15 points and seven assists for the Nuggets, who also snapped a five-game home losing streak. Denver was 36-5 at home last season.

"It's a wonderful feeling. We got the monkey off our back. We can't put it back on," said Faried.

The Nuggets' skid was their worst since dropping 10 straight in 2002-03.

Zach Randolph scored 25 points and pulled down 13 rebounds while Mike Conley added 23 points and eight assists for the Grizzlies, who had won four of their last six entering the game.

"We gave ourselves a chance. They made a run, we bounced back. We felt we should have won the game," Randolph said.

Denver led 87-77 2 1/2 minutes into the final frame as Robinson knocked down a long 3-pointer. The teams traded baskets from there, until Conley's trey made it a two-point game, 98-96, with 4:05 to go.

Memphis was able to push its spread back to seven, 105-98, moments later, but a Prince 3-ball with a minute left pulled the visitors within 107-104. Lawson answered with a trey seven seconds later, but a pair of Jon Leuer free throws, followed by a Conley layup with just over 12 ticks remaining, made it a two- point game.

The Nuggets called a timeout after Conley's make to advance the ball past halfcourt, but threw it to Randy Foye in the backcourt, who eluded a Memphis defender and passed it up court. The Nuggets managed to pass the ball around until Robinson was fouled under the basket with 4.7 seconds remaining.

Robinson made the first free throw, but his second rimmed out and the Grizzlies quickly called a timeout. Memphis found Mike Miller off the inbounds pass, but the sniper couldn't get his trey to fall as the Nuggets survived for the win.

Denver led 28-23 after the first quarter and saw its lead swell to 16 points in the second before taking a 58-48 lead into the break.

The Grizzlies opened the third on a 17-6 run to take a 65-64 lead. Memphis went up by as many as five, 71-66, with just over 2 1/2 minutes left in the frame, but the Nuggets outscored the Grizzlies 9-6 the rest of the way to lead 77-75.

Game Notes

Denver's last win came on Dec. 15 ... The Nuggets dropped 23 games from Dec. 9, 1997-Jan. 23, 1998, the longest skid in franchise history ... Earlier on Friday ... The Denver Nuggets rescinded their two-game suspension of Andre Miller on Friday, though the veteran guard will still be held out of upcoming games for what the team termed as "personal reasons" ... Tayshaun Prince scored 13 points and Kosta Koufos added 11 for the Grizzlies ... Koufos, who spent the past two seasons with Denver, returned to Pepsi Center for the first time since he was traded to Memphis in the offseason.