Minnesota Timberwolves' Karl-Anthony Towns, left, and Golden State Warriors' Zaza Pachulia of Republic of Georgia battle for the rebound during the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, March 10, 2017, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)
Minnesota Timberwolves' Karl-Anthony Towns, left, and Golden State Warriors' Zaza Pachulia of Republic of Georgia battle for the rebound during the first half of an NBA basketball game Friday, March 10, 2017, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jim Mone) Credit: Jim Mone

Denver — Nikola Jokic had 21 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists in his return to the lineup, and the Denver Nuggets beat the Boston Celtics 119-99 on Friday night.

Jokic played 27 minutes after missing two games because of illness. Wilson Chandler had 23 points and eight rebounds for the Nuggets, and Danilo Gallinari returned from sitting out Wednesday’s game with vertigo to score 20 points.

Denver increased its lead for the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference to a full game over idle Portland.

Isaiah Thomas had 19 points, Avery Bradley 16 and Al Horford 15 for the Celtics, who finished their road trip 2-3. Boston held Golden State to 86 points in Wednesday’s win, but couldn’t contain the Nuggets, who never trailed.

Wolves 103, Warriors 102

Minneapolis — Andrew Wiggins scored 20 of his 24 points in the second half and hit the go-ahead free throws with 12.8 seconds left to lift Minnesota over scuffling Golden State.

Ricky Rubio had 17 points and 13 assists, and Karl-Anthony Towns scored 23 points to give the Timberwolves their sixth win in eight games as they try to chase down the eighth seed in the Western Conference playoff race. They entered the night 2½ games behind Denver, with Portland and Dallas also ahead of them in the standings.

Klay Thompson scored 30 points for Golden State, but Stephen Curry’s remarkable shooting slump continued in the Warriors’ second straight loss and fourth in six games without injured star Kevin Durant.

Hawks 105, Raptors 99

Atlanta — Dennis Schroder scored 26 points, including 13 in the final period, and the Atlanta Hawks beat Toronto to pull closer in the race for the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference.

DeMar DeRozan led Toronto with 28 points. He became the first player to score 11,000 points with the Raptors.

Bucks 99, Pacers 85

Milwaukee — Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton each scored 21 points, and the Bucks won their season-high fifth straight game.

John Henson added eight points, seven rebounds and four blocks for Milwaukee, which clinched the season series against Indiana.

Rockets 115, Bulls 94

Chicago — James Harden had 19 points, 13 assists and rebounds, and Houston used a dominant third quarter.

Ryan Anderson added 21 points as the Rockets avoided their first three-game losing streak of the season.

Hornets 121, Magic 81

Charlotte, n.c. — Kemba Walker scored 23 points, Nic Batum and Marvin Williams had double-doubles and the Hornets beat Orlando for their third win in the last four games.

Walker, who earned NBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week earlier this week, was 9 of 13 from the field and knocked down five of his first seven 3-point attempts in only 24 minutes of action.

Mavericks 105, Nets 96

Dallas — Harrison Barnes scored 21 points, Dirk Nowitzki had 13 after a slow start in his first game since reaching 30,000 points and Dallas beat lowly Brooklyn.

The Mavericks, appearing flat three nights after a raucous celebration of Nowitzki’s milestone, trailed in the fourth quarter with the NBA’s worst team missing leading scorer Brook Lopez because of an ankle injury. But they pulled away and matched a season best with a fourth straight win.