through 2 quarters

The Denver Nuggets were expected to win this one, and so far that’s exactly what’s happening. They are way ahead at halftime with a 68-56 lead over the Sacramento Kings.

The Nuggets were led by center Nikola Jokic, who so far has 18 points and five assists in addition to two blocks and two rebounds. A double-double would be Jokic’s seventh in a row.

Sacramento relied on point guard De’Aaron Fox, who has 14 points and three assists with three boards, and center Alex Len, who has ten points in addition to five boards.

Sacramento hasn’t been a great team in the second half this year, losing 83% of the time while they were at the break.

Who plays

Sacramento @ Denver

Current records: Sacramento 16-24; Denver 18-18

What there is to know

The Denver Nuggets haven’t won a game against the Sacramento Kings since December 29, 2019, but they will look to end the drought on Friday. The Nuggets will once again host Sacramento at the Ball Arena, where kickoff is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET. Denver is set to stop a four-game losing streak at home.

Denver was within striking range but couldn’t close the gap Wednesday as they lost 115-109 to the Utah Jazz. A silver lining for Denver was play from center Nikola Jokic, who managed a triple-double with 26 points, 21 boards and 11 assists.

Meanwhile, Sacramento was on hand but couldn’t close the gap Wednesday as they lost 108-102 to the Atlanta Hawks. One thing that held the Kings back was poor play from power forward Harrison Barnes, who didn’t have his best game: He finished with just eight points on a 3-on-10 shot during his 29 minutes in the field.

The Nuggets are the favorites in this one, with an expected win margin of 8 points. It might not be the best time to face Denver ATS as they’ve let the punters down in the last two straight games.

The losses put Denver at 18-18 and Sacramento at 16-24. Denver is 8-9 after losses this season, Sacramento 9-14.

How to watch

• When: Friday at 9 p.m. ET
• Or: Ball Arena – Denver, Colorado
• TV: Altitude sports and entertainment
• Online broadcast: fuboTV (Try free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
• To follow: CBS Sports app
• Cost of the ticket: $ 14.49

Chances

The Nuggets are an 8-point favorite against the Kings, according to the latest NBA odds.

The punters had a good idea of ​​the line for this one, as the game opened with the Nuggets as the 7.5-point favorite.

Over / Under: -110

See the NBA’s picks for each game, including this one, of SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get choices now.

History of the series

Denver and Sacramento both have ten wins in their last 20 games.

• February 06, 2021 – Sacramento 119 vs. Denver 114
• December 29, 2020 – Sacramento 125 vs. Denver 115
• December 23, 2020 – Sacramento 124 vs. Denver 122
• December 29, 2019 – Denver 120 vs. Sacramento 115
• November 30, 2019 – Sacramento 100 vs. Denver 97
• October 28, 2019 – Denver 101 vs. Sacramento 94
• February 13, 2019 – Denver 120 vs. Sacramento 118
• January 03, 2019 – Denver 117 v Sacramento 113
• October 23, 2018 – Denver 126 vs. Sacramento 112
• March 11, 2018 – Denver 130 vs. Sacramento 104
• January 06, 2018 – Sacramento 106 vs. Denver 98
• November 20, 2017 – Denver 114 vs. Sacramento 98
• October 21, 2017 – Denver 96 vs. Sacramento 79
• March 11, 2017 – Denver 105 v Sacramento 92
• March 06, 2017 – Denver 108 v Sacramento 96
• February 23, 2017 – Sacramento 116 vs. Denver 100
• January 03, 2017 – Sacramento 120 vs. Denver 113
• April 02, 2016 – Sacramento 115 vs. Denver 106
• February 23, 2016 – Sacramento 114 vs. Denver 110
• February 19, 2016 – Sacramento 116 vs. Denver 110

Denver injury report

• Aaron Gordon: Decision during the match (Illness)
• Nah’Shon Hyland: Decision during the match (Illness)
• Zeke Nnaji: Decision at the time of the game (Covid-19)
• Petr Cornelie: absent (Covid-19)
• Markus Howard: out (knee)
• Jamal Murray: Out (knee)
• Vlatko Cancar: Out (foot)
• Michael Porter Jr .: Out for the Season (Back)
• PJ Dozier: Out for the Season (knee)

Sacramento injury report

• Terence Davis: Game time decision (ankle)
• Richaun Holmes: absent (Covid-19)
• Chimezie Metu: Exit (Covid-19)