Hardaway Jr. and Gordon Propel Shorthanded Nuggets Past Bucks in 108-104 Triumph

Written by Pavel Kateliev

Pavel Kateliev is a popular sport journalist, particularly in the fields of football, basketball, tennis, and hockey. He writes daily for Sportingpedia and his work has been translated into at least 20 languages and featured on renowned outlets such as BBC, Yahoo, MCN, Sun, and Evening News, in Italian, English, Spanish, and Portuguese.

, | Updated: January 12, 2026

Key Takeaways:

Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 25 points and Aaron Gordon added 23 as the Denver Nuggets defeated the Milwaukee Bucks 108-104
Denver overcame the absence of five of its top eight scorers, including Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, who are combining for 84.6 points per game this season
Giannis Antetokounmpo led Milwaukee with 31 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds, but the Bucks failed to capitalise on late chances to tie the game

Match Analysis

In a closely fought contest at Ball Arena, the depleted Denver Nuggets demonstrated their resilience by overcoming the Milwaukee Bucks 108-104. With five regular contributors unavailable, including Nikola Jokic (bone bruise in left knee) and Jamal Murray (sprained left ankle), Denver relied on a collective effort and crucial contributions from their available squad.

Sunday Funday 😀#MileHighBasketball pic.twitter.com/QJDNmtQKpZ
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) January 12, 2026

Tim Hardaway Jr. led the way with 25 points, while Aaron Gordon delivered 23 points – including three decisive free throws in the last nine seconds to secure victory. Peyton Watson also impressed, posting 19 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Watson has been in fine form across the previous seven games, averaging 23.7 points and 6.9 rebounds per outing. Zeke Nnaji managed his first double-double of the campaign, notching 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Statistical Breakdown

Player	Team	Points	Rebounds	Assists
Tim Hardaway Jr.	Nuggets	25	2	0
Aaron Gordon	Nuggets	23	6	4
Peyton Watson	Nuggets	19	8	6
Zeke Nnaji	Nuggets	14	10	3
Giannis Antetokounmpo	Bucks	31	8	11
Myles Turner	Bucks	16	5	0
Bobby Portis	Bucks	14	2	0
AJ Green	Bucks	14	5	4

Bucks’ Rally Falls Just Short

Milwaukee trailed by as many as 15 points in the first half and faced an 11-point deficit entering the final quarter. The Bucks pulled within 105-102 late, but missed consecutive potential game-tying three-pointers from Ryan Rollins and AJ Green with under 20 seconds remaining. Ryan Rollins, who had a streak of 37 games scoring at least 10 points, was limited to two points.

Entering Sunday night, the Bucks had won five of their last seven after a challenging 12-19 start. Meanwhile, Denver had lost five of eight since a 22-8 opening to the season, including going 3-4 following Jokic’s injury, sustained in a loss to the Miami Heat on 29 December.