Washington Wizards forward Kyshawn George, left, looks on as guard Jordan Poole reacts after hitting a 3-point basket as time runs out in an NBA basketball game against the Denver Nuggets, Saturday, March 15, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Jordan Poole swished a 35-foot, 3-pointer with 1.8 seconds left to give the Washington Wizards a stunning 126-123 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Saturday night.
Poole had time to move closer but stopped well behind the 3-point line and hoisted the successful shot that gave the Eastern Conference-worst Wizards (15-51) a two-game season sweep of the Nuggets.
Alex Sarr scored a career-high 34 points for Washington, which is 6-4 over its last 10 games.
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JORDAN POOLE WINS IT FROM WAY DOWNTOWN 🤯😱🚨 pic.twitter.com/OtymzdFekX
— NBA (@NBA) March 16, 2025
Poole and Kyshawn George scored 19 points apiece and Justin Champagnie had 16 points and 13 rebounds for the Wizards.
It was a wild ending as George drilled a wide-open 3-pointer to give Washington a 123-121 lead with 10 seconds remaining. Denver’s Jamal Murray hit a tying 15-footer with 5.3 seconds left before the final sequence.
Nikola Jokic had 40 points, 13 rebounds and nine assists for Denver (43-25). Jokic scored a career-high 56 points on Dec. 7 in the first meeting with Washington.
Murray added 24 points, seven assists and four steals and Russell Westbrook had 22 points and 11 assists for the Nuggets. Westbrook became the 21st player in NBA history to top 26,000 points. He finished the night with 26,013.
Michael Porter Jr. had 20 points and 11 rebounds for Denver.
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A career-high 34 points for Alex Sarr, the No. 2 pick in this year’s NBA draft 🙌
34 PTS
6 REB
5 AST
5 3PM@WashWizards W pic.twitter.com/Y0TrkAfXDh— NBA (@NBA) March 16, 2025
Sarr hit a tying 3-pointer with 2:13 remaining and added two free throws 22 seconds later to give Washington a 118-116 lead.
Porter knocked down a corner trey to give Denver a one-point edge with 1:31 to play.
Poole hit a 12-footer to give Washington a 120-119 lead with 44.4 seconds to play.
Westbrook scored on an inbounds play to put Denver back ahead by one with 30.1 seconds left.
The Nuggets shot 50.5 percent from the field, including 12 of 34 from 3-point range.
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The Wizards made 48.4 percent of their attempts and hit 19 of 45 from behind the arc.
Murray scored five straight points in the third quarter as the Nuggets took a 92-81 lead with 3:12 left. But Washington roared back with a 14-3 quarter-ending push. George drained a tying 3-pointer with 1.5 seconds left to tie it at 95.
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Champagnie opened the fourth quarter with a trey to give the Wizards their first lead since 2-0.
Jokic scored 27 points in the first half to help the Nuggets hold a 72-63 lead at the break. Sarr had 24 in the half for the Wizards.
Jokic had 20 points in the opening quarter as Denver took a 44-30 lead.
