DENVER (AP) — Peyton Watson’s timing was perfect Almost a year later and a similar situation occurred late in the game against the same star player.

The Denver Nuggets’ high-flying forward blocked a shot attempt by Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in the final seconds. preserved the victory 124-122 on the Thunder on Wednesday night.

It was a stark contrast to what happened in Denver last December. Gilgeous-Alexander scores the game-winning shot He stayed on Watson’s outstretched arms for a second.

Watson did not forget that moment.

Watson won’t forget this either. His final shot came just after he missed a pair of free throws with 16 seconds left that could have ended the game.

“I said, ‘I need to fix this.’ I’ve got to get this back,'” Watson said of his mentality on the defensive end of the floor. “Luckily I was in a position to help my team and help us save the game. But it’s definitely super frustrating. I definitely should have taken my free throws.”

After Wednesday’s game, his thoughts turned to Gilgeous-Alexander’s winning basket on Dec. 16, when the Thunder rallied for the win.

While the Nuggets handed the Thunder their first loss of the season, Watson is happy to get some revenge.

“I never stopped thinking about it,” said Watson, who the Nuggets captured with the 30th pick with the draft night deal he made with Oklahoma City in 2022. “I never, ever stopped thinking about it. I’m one of those guys who brags about any late shot clock in the quarter or game situation, I’m not really the guy to go after. (Gilgeous-Alexander) was superior to me at that time. He is a great player, one of the league’s front-runners for MVP. So he has a reason for all of this.”

Watson had a key performance to help the Nuggets rally from a 16-point deficit in the third quarter. He scored six of his 10 points in the fourth quarter. He also had three blocks.

But what impressed Nuggets coach Michael Malone was that Watson didn’t sulk after missing free throws. He returned to defense.

“That’s what you love about Peyton Watson,” said Malone, whose team had a four-game lead over the Thunder. “This was obviously a huge block. “I’m proud of him for rallying after the free throws.”

The short-handed Nuggets also needed him to step up, with power forward Aaron Gordon (strained calf) and point guard Jamal Murray (concussion protocol) sidelined.

Denver got big contributions from a group of young players, including Christian Braun (24 points) and Julian Strawther (9 points).

“You hope it will give them more and more confidence,” Malone said of playing in big moments.

For Watson, it certainly is.

“I’ve never had anything handed to me on a silver platter,” Watson said. “So for me it was all about making a living. You must continue to work hard to stay where you are and maintain it. “It’s just about improving game by game.”

This is a block he won’t soon forget.

“It felt good to be able to bounce back a little bit tonight,” Watson added.

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