Harris has 27 as Nuggets edge Blazers 113-112

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – Gary Harris, who had missed Denver’s last two games with a sore left ankle, scored 27 points and the Nuggets won their fifth straight game by edging the Portland Trail Blazers 113-112 on Friday night.

Paul Millsap added 22 points for the Nuggets, who led by as many as 17 points but nearly squandered it in the frantic final minutes.

CJ McCollum had 33 points, but missed a short jumper at the final buzzer as the Blazers came up just short. Jusuf Nurkic added 17 points and 11 rebounds for Portland, which has lost four of its last five games.

The Blazers started to chip away at Denver’s lead late in the third quarter. McCollum’s jumper got Portland within 98-97 with 6:04 left but Monte Morris answered with a 3-pointer for the Nuggets and the Blazers couldn’t get any closer until Nurkic’s basket with 1:30 left counted on a goaltending call to close the gap to 108-106.

McCollum added step-back jumper to tie it at 108 with less than a minute left.

Jamal Murray made a pair of free throws for Denver before McCollum came through again with a layup to re-tie it with 37.1 seconds left – but Harris nailed a corner 3-pointer to put the Nuggets in front 113-110.

McCollum dunked on the other end and Murray was called out of bounds after the inbound to give Portland back the ball. After a review, the call was overturned.

The game clock was re-set to 6.9 seconds and Murray was again called out of bounds on the inbound, but McCollum’s jumper at the buzzer was off to end it.

It was the first of a five-game road trip for the Nuggets, who were coming off of a 117-85 victory at home over the L.A. Lakers.

Harris hit a 3-pointer that capped a 14-2 run that put the Nuggets in front 28-17 late in the first quarter. Denver led by as many as 14 points in the opening period.

Meyers Leonard had an emphatic dunk over Mason Plumlee as Portland struggled to close the gap. McCollum got the Blazers within single digits with a layup that made it 53-45, but Harris’ layup and free throw extended Denver’s lead again.

Millsap had 16 first-half points and the Nuggets went into the break with a 68-53 lead. Portland was hurt by 10 turnovers.

Nurkic had a tip-in that got Portland within 79-72 with just over five minutes left in the third. Damian Lillard’s 3-pointer closed the gap to 88-85, but Trey Lyles answered with his own long 3 for Denver.

The Trail Blazers snapped a three-game losing streak with a 115-112 victory over Orlando on Wednesday. Lillard had 41 points in the game, including a franchise-record 10 3-pointers. But against the Nuggets he was cold at the start, and had just five first-half points and finished with 15.

TIP INS:

Nuggets: It was the first of four games between the two teams this season. Denver won last year’s series 3-1. … The Nuggets held opponents under 100 points in each of the previous three games.

Trail Blazers: Nurkic played for the Nuggets for more than two seasons before he was traded to Portland in early 2017. … Portland has lost four straight to the Nuggets.

UP NEXT

The Nuggets visit Toronto on Monday.

The Trail Blazers visit San Antonio on Sunday.