NBA Game Summary - Denver at Utah

Salt Lake City, UT (Basketball News) - Carlos Arroyo hit a 10-foot baseline jumper at the buzzer to lift the Utah Jazz to an 85-83 win over Denver at the Delta Center.

Arroyo posted a double-double with 19 points and 10 assists, as the Jazz won for the fourth time in their last five games. Gordan Giricek chipped in 14 points, while Andrei Kirilenko added 13 and seven boards.

"It was a big shot," Arroyo said. "I knew I had to get open quick, because we only had a second to get a shot off. Fortunately, I was able to hit it and get the win for us."

With the win, Utah moved a game ahead of Denver for the eighth and final spot in the Western Conference playoff race.

Carmelo Anthony poured in a game-high 25 points and grabbed eight rebounds for the Nuggets, who lost on the road for the fifth straight contest.

With the win, Utah avoided being swept in the four-game season series versus the Nuggets. The Jazz won all four meetings against Denver last season.

Raul Lopez’s jumper with six minutes remaining in the game put the Jazz up by eight at 83-75.

However, the Nuggets responded by going on an 8-0 spurt, capped by Nene’s jumper in the lane, to knot the game at 83 apiece with two minutes to go.

Both teams failed to make a basket until the game’s final possession, as Arroyo drove the lane for a game-winning shot. Andre Miller reached in and fouled Arroyo with a second remaining before he could get an attempt off.

The Jazz point guard caught Raja Bell’s inbounds pass and turned to hit a leaner from 10-feet out as the buzzer sounded to grab the win for Utah.

It marked Utah’s fourth straight win at home.

Denver jumped out to a 12-4 lead 3 1/2 minutes into the contest, keyed by Anthony’s nine points. The Jazz fought back and went on a 13-2 run, capped by Bell’s three from the left wing, to go up by three. The teams traded baskets the rest of the frame, as Michael Doleac hit a hook shot in the lane in the final seconds to give the Nuggets a 23-22 lead after one.

The Nuggets led by as many as seven at 40-33 on Rodney White’s three with 3:51 to go in the second quarter. But Utah, again, fought back and scored 10 of the final 14 points of the half to pull within 44-43 at the intermission.

Jarron Collins hit a jumper with five minutes gone by in the third quarter to stake Utah to a 54-49 lead, but Denver answered with an 11-4 run, capped by a Jon Barry three, to go back on top 60-58. The Jazz, though, reeled off the next six points in building a 69-65 lead heading into the final period.