For a terrifying while, two of the Nuggets’ most insane nightmares came together.

Utah as well as the second quarter.

Tuesday night, Denver overcame both worries in a 111-95 victory over the Utah Jazz’s post-season dregs, despite a lackluster performance. Michael Malone and Nikola Jokic both had their first victory at Delta Center in their respective Nuggets careers, ending a six-game losing run in Salt Lake City.

With three games left for each club, including a crucial one on Wednesday when the Minnesota Timberwolves visit Denver in a match that will break the tie, the Nuggets (55-24) and Timberwolves are still tied for first place in the Western Conference. Unless Oklahoma City steps up, the Nuggets will likely end up as the third seed if they lose.

Jamal Murray needed to completely get over his seven-game absence in order to be healthy for that important contest. In addition to scoring a game-high 28 points, he shot 11 for 20 and had four thefts and three blocks on defense. By halftime, he had already scored five dunks, a career high. Particularly noteworthy as an indicator of his fitness during Denver’s 19-point first-quarter lead-building burst was a ferocious reverse slam.

Only for the much-feared second to bring about its customary turn of events. In terms of second-quarter net rating (minus-3.5) and second-quarter defensive rating (119), the Nuggets were rated 21st and 29th in the NBA respectively, going into this game. Utah gave up 36 points in the second quarter on Tuesday after doubling up their 17 points in the first. That set the tone for Utah’s subsequent struggles to stay inside single digits for the remainder of the game.

Denver’s lead was cut in half late in the third quarter by a 3-pointer from Talen Horton-Tucker, who was on fire. For a brief period, the game was tied at one run; however, Reggie Jackson quickly responded by hitting the first three of his one-for-six night, which helped to spark a key 7-0 run.

In spite of the absence of Jordan Clarkson, Lauri Markkanen, Collin Sexton, John Collins, Walker Kessler, and Kris Dunn, Horton-Tucker was a physical force for the Jazz, scoring 24 points to keep the game interesting.

Meanwhile, the Nuggets were still vying for the top seed with just Aaron Gordon out of the lineup. Aside from securing home-court advantage, the most advantageous objective they can achieve this week is reacclimating Murray in time for the playoffs. Malone went out to the floor to see how he was warming up and to observe the pregame ritual from the bench for a few minutes, dribbling the ball between his legs while he watched. Murray is still limited to a certain number of minutes (Malone evaded questions about it), but in the fourth quarter, when Denver most needed him, he appeared to be at the top of his game.

Murray self-engineered a 9-2 run with three straight 3-pointers in as many possessions, pushing his team to a 95-88 lead and ultimately enabling them to see light beyond Utah’s horror house. His time was twenty-seven minutes.

In a subpar effort by his standards, Jokic tallied 28 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists, and three steals. With 11 points from three 3-point range, Christian Braun gave the Nuggets an early lead.