Hunter Tyson leads Nuggets over Indiana Pacers for first win of Summer League

It took a team effort, but the Nuggets got their first win of Summer League on Thursday in Las Vegas.

Hunter Tyson led the way in scoring, while PJ Hall, his former college teammate at Clemson, added a double-double in Denver's 86-71 win over Indiana. Rookie Trey Alexander added another double-figures scoring performance with 19 points to go with six rebounds, two assists and two steals, while Jahmir Young enjoyed his best game of the summer with 18 points on 5-of-8 shooting.

Denver’s defense held the Pacers to 31.5% from the field and 25.7% from 3-point range. Rookie guard Tristen Newton led Indiana with 15 points but made just 3 of his 15 shots.

What went right: Tyson regained his Summer League form in the second half. After struggling to replicate last year’s first-team showing in Denver’s first three games this summer, Tyson scored 14 of his 23 points after halftime. The second-year forward made 3 of the 6 3-pointers he attempted and sunk all four of his free throws. He tallied a few rebounds one assist and a steal in nearly 33 minutes of playing time.

What went wrong: It was another quiet day for Jalen Pickett. The second-year guard played just over 8 minutes and missed both shots he attempted. He did not record any other stats before watching most of the game from the bench.

Highlight of the day: Josiah-Jordan James thought he had a highlight before PJ Hall showed up late in the first half. The Pacers wing cut down the middle of the lane, caught a bounce pass and went up for a dunk only for Hall to slide over and reject the shot with a right-handed stuff. It was one of his two blocks, as he finished with a 10-point, 13-rebound double-double.

Up next: The Nuggets play their final game of Summer League against the Pelicans at 7 p.m. Saturday.