Denver @ Utah preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 18, 2017 ) Denver 96, Utah 106

The Utah Jazz have seemingly righted the ship after a lengthy slump, but the positive results have come against the bottom half of the Eastern Conference. The Jazz will try to knock off one of the many teams above them in the West when they host the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday in the finale of a three-game homestand.

Following a 1-7 stretch, Utah has claimed three victories in the last four games against Orlando, Chicago and Milwaukee, a trio that entered Monday with a combined 20-36 record. Denver presents a different challenge, although it is still figuring some things out in the wake of the wrist injury to forward Paul Millsap, who is out several months following surgery. The Nuggets leaned on star center Nikola Jokic (28 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists) in a 104-92 victory over Memphis at home Friday night. Tuesday's contest will be just the sixth in a 15-day span for Denver, which has lost six straight in Salt Lake City.

TV: 10 p.m. ET, ESPN, Altitude (Denver), AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain (Utah)

ABOUT THE NUGGETS (11-8): Kenneth Faried has made two starts in Millsap's place since the injury, standing out in Friday's win with 14 points and nine rebounds, and coach Michael Malone knows his veteran forward can bring something unique to the table. "What sets Kenneth apart from most people is he's an elite runner, he's an elite offensive rebounder and he's an elite athlete," Malone told reporters. Faried made 8-of-12 free throws against Memphis while his teammates combined to go 7-for-14, which dropped the team's percentage from the line to 72 percent, 28th in the league entering Monday.

ABOUT THE JAZZ (9-11): Rookie Donovan Mitchell hit six of Utah's franchise-record 18 3-pointers in the 121-108 victory over Milwaukee on Saturday as the squad continued to lean on its perimeter game with center Rudy Gobert sidelined. "I thought we were unbelievably unselfish," coach Quin Snyder told reporters after his team tied a season high with 31 assists. "I thought offensively, we were really connected in trying to help each other. And when you do that, you have a better chance at having a really good shooting night." The Jazz are averaging 13.6 made 3-pointers and hitting 42.1 percent of their long-range attempts in the eight games since Gobert went down with a knee injury.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Jazz PG Ricky Rubio is 5-for-8 from beyond the arc over a three-game span after going 2-for-29 over his previous eight contests.

2. Nuggets SG Gary Harris has 11 steals over his last three games and is averaging 18 points since coming back from a shoulder injury five games ago.

3. Jokic was held to seven points on 3-of-10 shooting as Utah defeated Denver 106-96 in the opener for both teams Dec. 18.

PREDICTION: Jazz 113, Nuggets 108