In a game highlighted by offense, the Denver Nuggets suffered their second-straight home loss 121-114 at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks.

With the loss, Denver’s record now sits at 9-4 and moves them into third place in the Western Conference.

The last three games Denver has lost by a combined 11 points with each game coming down to the wire. The game on Sunday night was no different as the Nuggets overcame an 11-point deficit going into the fourth quarter, but it was still not enough as Denver fell to Milwaukee and suffered their third-straight loss.

There is plenty to talk about from this one, so let’s dive into five takeaways from the Nuggets most recent home loss.

Denver and Milwaukee shoot the lights out 

After struggling offensively in a number of first quarters this season, that certainly was not the case for the Nuggets against Milwaukee. With Juancho Hernangomez slotted into the starting lineup for Torrey Craig, the Nuggets made the most of their floor spacing with 35 first-quarter points.

The highlight of the Nuggets first quarter had to be their six made 3-pointers. That means Denver had one more 3-point make in the first quarter against the Bucks than they had in their entire game against the Brooklyn Nets. Both Nikola Jokic and Paul Millsap had two threes after the first quarter and both players really set the tone for the Nuggets offense.

Now, while the Nuggets offense was flying high, so were the Bucks. Milwaukee countered Denver’s six first quarter threes with five of their own, but Denver held a 35-33 lead after the first 12 minutes of the game.

The first half was just an appetizer to the final two quarters though. The offense ramped up to an all-time high in the third quarter courtesy of the hot shooting from Brook Lopez. At one point in the third quarter, Lopez was pulling up from insane distances from behind the arc and finished the night with 28 points on 10-17 shooting from the field, and a blazing 8-13 from three-point range.

Lopez’s big third quarter set the tone for Milwaukee’s offense, but even then, the Nuggets still made it interesting in the fourth quarter. Denver would outscore the Bucks 26-22 in the fourth, but it still was not enough as Milwaukee’s offense was too extreme.

The Bucks finished the night with 17 threes and shot 50 percent from distance, while the Nuggets posted their best game from distance on the season going 18-for-38 equating to 47 percent from 3-point distance. Even with Denver’s best offensive performance of the year, it was not enough. The Bucks offense was just to extreme to overcome in the end.

Nuggets bench unit continues to play phenomenal basketball 

The key moment in the game was the fourth quarter when the Nuggets began the final period on a 22-7 run. That run was courtesy of the second unit, who continued to show up in big moments. They outscored Milwaukee’s bench 32-18.

Most of those points came in the fourth quarter when the unit of Monte Morris, Malik Beasley, Trey Lyles, Mason Plumlee, and starting shooting guard Gary Harris set the tone for the Nuggets comeback. Morris continued to excel as Denver’s backup point guard (we’ll get to him later), while Beasley, Lyles, and Plumlee all made big plays in huge moments.

The continued confidence Denver’s second unit plays with was evident in their shot totals. They made 13-26 attempts and, of those 26 shots, the bench made 5-12 from behind the 3-point line with Beasley and Lyles each making two a piece. Both of Beasley’s 3-point makes came in the fourth and were huge momentum boosters in the Nuggets regaining some momentum before the starters came in.

Even though Denver’s starters struggled to finish the game, the Nuggets would not have been in the game if it was not for their bench unit. The bench unit continues to perform well on a nightly basis and even though it has not resulted in wins as of late, they have been big in keeping Denver within striking distance in pretty much every game this season.

Monte Morris continues to shine as Denver’s backup point guard 

At this point it should come as no surprise, but Morris continues to shine running the Nuggets’ second unit. The big run by the bench unit in the fourth quarter was led by the play of Morris, who continuously got the ball to his teammates in places where they could have success.

That is evidence in Morris’ stat line as he finished the night with five points, 10 assists, and zero turnovers. Through 13 games this season, Morris leads the NBA in assist-to-turnover ratio at 10-to-one and the next closest player is Tyus Jones at 5.57. Morris is now second on the Nuggets in assists per game at 3.8 trailing only Nikola Jokic who is averaging 6.9 assists per game. Morris is now averaging just 0.4 turnovers per game.

For a rookie whose only played in 16 games in the NBA, Morris is playing like a seasoned veteran for the Nuggets so far this season. With the poise and confidence he plays with on a nightly basis, he is giving Denver a reliable player night in and night out.

In my latest article I touched on why Morris is the Nuggets backup point guard of the future, and his performance against the Bucks was just another revelation to that notion.

Juancho Hernenagomez makes the most of his new found role in the starting lineup  

After starting Craig for 10-straight games, Nuggets head coach Michael Malone had finally seen enough and inserted Hernangomez into the starting lineup against the Bucks. You could immediately tell the difference with Hernangomez on the court as the Nuggets offense benefited vastly because of it.

In his 18 first half minutes, Hernangomez chipped in five points on 2-3 shooting from the field, 1-1 from behind the three-point line.

That three is a prime example of the threat Denver gets with Hernangomez in the starting lineup and is something that Craig just cannot provide. Does the defense suffer from it? Not really, because of the rim protection Hernangomez has brought to the Nuggets this season. With Hernangomez in the starting lineup it also gives Denver another player the opponent has to respect on the offensive end of the floor.

Hernangomez finished the night with eight points in 30 minutes, while also contributing to the stat sheet with three rebounds, one assist, and one steal. Not the most eye popping line, but it was clear how much more fluid and spaced the Nuggets offense with Hernangomez in the starting five.

It will be interesting to see if Hernangomez starts again when Houston comes to town on Tuesday night, but he certainly helped his case with his play against Milwaukee.

Paul Millsap plays his best offensive game of the season 

Before the Nuggets needed a spark in the fourth quarter, they needed one in the first half just as bad. Millsap was the one who answered the call as his five threes in the first half carried him to a game-high 23 points through two quarters.

In a first half that was very back and forth, the play from Millsap kept the Nuggets in the game giving them just a four-point deficit at the half.

Millsap would finish the game with just 25 points, but he still posted a season high and finally seems to be getting in a rhythm offensively. He’s now up to 12.7 points per game and is second on the team with 5.1 rebounds per game. Millsap’s now scored in double-figures in all but three games this season and has gone for double-digit point totals in seven of the last eight games.