WILSON Chandler waxed hot early en route to a career-high 36 points to set a torrid pace in the Denver Nuggets rout over the Sacramento Kings, 108-96, at the Pepsi Center on Monday (Tuesday, Manila time).
Chandler hit three of his five triples to score 16 in the first quarter to lead the Nuggets in a tight battle with the Kings early on. He also sparked a 17-5 run in the second quarter as Denver started pulling away from Sacramento with 57-50 lead at the break.
Denver went on to outscore Sacramento in the third, 33-23, to extend the lead to 17. The Nuggets even led by as much as 21 early in the fourth before the Kings unleashed a 13-2 run late in the period to cut the gap to nine, 105-96, with 1:24 left. But Chandler set his new mark with a clutch triple to finish off the Kings.
Danilo Gallinari added 18 points and Gary Harris chipped in 15 markers as Denver improved to 29-34, two games ahead of the Portland Trailblazers for the eighth spot in the West. Mason Plumlee stepped up for the injured Nikola Jokic with 10 points, 12 rebounds and five assists.
Darren Collison led the Kings (25-38) with 17 points, while Buddy Hield and Kousta Koufos each had 14 markers.