OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Nikola Jokic had 35 points, 18 rebounds and eight assists, and the Denver Nuggets beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 140-127 on Monday night.

Jamal Murray scored 34 points for the Nuggets, who lost 127-103 in Oklahoma City on Sunday.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the NBA's leading scorer and a top contender for league MVP with Jokic, finished with 25 points for the Thunder. He scored 40 the day before.

Lu Dort had a season-high 26 points and made eight 3-pointers and Isaiah Hartenstein scored 20 points for Oklahoma City. The loss snapped a seven-game win streak for the Thunder, who have the best record in the Western Conference and are vying with Cleveland for the top record in the league.

The season series ends tied at 2-all, with the teams splitting the games at each venue.

The Thunder led 73-67 at halftime behind 16 points from Hartenstein and 15 from Gilgeous-Alexander. But Thunder All-Star Jalen Williams left the game in the second quarter with a right hip strain and did not return. He had 12 points and six assists in 14 minutes.

Denver took advantage and led 101-99 at the end of the third quarter.

The Nuggets dominated the fourth quarter, much the way the Thunder did the previous day. Murray hit a 3-pointer that gave Denver a 109-101 lead with just over 10 minutes remaining, and the Nuggets cruised from there.

Takeaways

Nuggets: Denver showed its grit by bouncing back against a younger, deeper team on the second half of a back-to-back.

Thunder: Oklahoma City wasn't nearly as fluid in the second half without Williams. The Thunder will need him to recover quickly if they want a shot at the overall top seed.

Key moment

 

Russell Westbrook and Peyton Watson made back-to-back 3-pointers to give the Nuggets a 125-111 lead with just under seven minutes remaining.

Key stat

Jokic made 15 of 20 field goals.

Up next

Nuggets host Minnesota on Wednesday, and Thunder visit Boston.

Broncos bolster their defense by agreeing to terms with former 49ers Greenlaw and Hufanga

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — The Denver Broncos are solidifying the middle of their defense and they're doing it by adding two former San Francisco 49ers players.

The Broncos agreed to three-year contracts with inside linebacker Dre Greenlaw and safety Talanoa Hufanga on Monday, the first day of the legal tampering window ahead of free agency's official start on Wednesday, a person with knowledge of the negotiations told The Associated Press.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the deals won't be announced until the new league year begins midweek.

Denver general manager George Paton and coach Sean Payton said at the NFL scouting combine that they needed to solidify the middle of their defense, and they began doing that with by agreeing to re-sign defensive tackle D.J. Jones to a three-year deal worth $39 million over the weekend, according to a person with knowledge of the terms.

Hufanga's deal is worth $45 million with $20 million guaranteed, another person with knowledge of the terms told the AP.

Hufanga has been limited to 17 games over the last two years because of injuries. When healthy, he'll add depth to a secondary that features Brandon Jones, who signed in free agency a year ago and had his best season, and P.J. Locke, who played well in 2024 despite a broken thumb.

Over the weekend, the Broncos agreed to a two-year, $12 million deal with quarterback Bo Nix’s backup, Jarrett Stidham. On Monday they lost their other QB, Zach Wilson, who agreed to a one-year, $6 million deal with the Miami Dolphins.

The Broncos also are losing running back Javonte Williams to the Dallas Cowboys and inside linebacker Cody Barton to the Tennessee Titans. Barton had a solid season and steadied the defense after Alex Singleton sustained a season-ending ACL injury early in the season.