The New Orleans Pelicans take on the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena on Thursday night.

The Pelicans (38-38) are slotted into the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference thanks in large part to strong recent play, but they'll enter Thursday's contest having just seen a five-game winning streak snapped with a 120-109 loss to the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday night. Brandon Ingram led the Pelicans with 26 points, adding eight rebounds, seven assists and one block. Trey Murphy furnished 21 points, three boards, three assists, two blocks and one steal. C.J. McCollum supplied 15 points, three assists and one rebound. Herbert Jones delivered 13 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals. Jonas Valanciunas posted 11 points, nine rebounds and five assists.

The Pelicans will remain without Jose Alvarado (leg) and Zion Williamson (hamstring) for Thursday's game.

The Nuggets (51-24) are trying to hold off the Memphis Grizzlies for the top spot in the Western Conference, and they've helped their cause recently with four consecutive victories. Their most recent success came Monday night, when they edged the short-handed Philadelphia 76ers by a 116-111 score. Nikola Jokic led the way with a 25-point, 17-rebound, 12-assist triple-double that included two blocks. Jamal Murray turned in 19 points, seven assists, five rebounds and two steals. Bruce Brown registered 18 points, five assists, four rebounds and one steal. Michael Porter offered 15 points and six rebounds. Aaron Gordon contributed 12 points, four rebounds, two assists, two steals and one block.

The Nuggets will list Jokic (calf), Vlatko Cancar (ankle) and Peyton Watson (illness) as questionable for Thursday's game.

Thursday's game marks the fourth and final meeting between the teams this season. The Nuggets hold a 2-1 series lead.