DENVER -- When Kenneth Faried saw teammate Danilo Gallinari's desperation shot go up, he had one thought.

"Go get it," Faried said.

A simple but effective plan.

Faried's rebound and layup with five seconds left gave the Nuggets a 103-102 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night.

Faried finished with 19 points and nine rebounds, and Gallinari had 25 points for the Nuggets (4-4). Guard Emmanuel Mudiay finished with 16 points and 11 assists.

Denver blew a double-digit lead in the fourth but was rescued on the final possessions. Gallinari was blanketed near the sideline with time running down, so the forward forced a jumper. Faried came down the lane, grabbed the airball and put it in to give Denver the win.

"I just knew I had to be around the rim for whatever happened," Faried said. "Miss or make, I was right there in position to grab the rebound or be up and ready for whatever happened."

Milwaukee guard Khris Middleton, who forced Gallinari's tough shot, missed a 20-foot jumper from the baseline that would have won it for the Bucks (4-5).

"I'll take it," Middleton said. "I felt like I got a good look off it, I felt like it had a chance to go in. It just didn't. I missed it, move on."

Guard Jerryd Bayless led Milwaukee with 22 points off the bench, and center Greg Monroe had 18 points and 10 rebounds. Guard Greivis Vasquez added 15 points and nine assists.

The Bucks shot 70 percent in the first half but just 35.9 percent in the second.

Milwaukee led most of the game before falling behind by 13 early in the fourth. Bayless scored 11 points in a 13-2 Bucks run cut Denver's lead to 95-93.

Bayless tied it with a 3-pointer with 1:54 left, and forward Johnny O'Bryant's baseline jumper gave the Bucks a 100-98 advantage with 1:21 remaining.

"I thought it was time to turn on the gas to get back in it," Bayless said. "It got crazy."

Mudiay split a pair of free throws to make it a one-point game. After Monroe missed on a hook in the lane, Mudiay hit two foul shots to put Denver ahead.

Milwaukee forward Giannis Antetokounmpo hit a soft jumper at the rim with 17.5 seconds left. Denver called timeout and set up the winning sequence.

"We have to do a better job in late-game situations, late-game execution, get a much better shot off than we got off," Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. "We were lucky to win this game. We'll take it. We're thankful for it but by no means are we satisfied."

The Bucks hit 30 of their first 42 shots in the game to take a 13-point lead early in the third, but Denver was able to stay in range. Milwaukee went 4-for-13 as the Nuggets rallied. Down by six midway through the third, Faried scored 11 points in a 13-0 run that gave the Nuggets an 81-75 lead.

Gallinari finished the quarter with his third 3-pointer of the frame to put Denver ahead 87-80 heading into the fourth.

Denver guards Randy Foye and Will Barton scored the first six points of the fourth to make it a 93-80 lead before the Bucks rallied.

Milwaukee hit 15 of its first 21 shots to lead by eight early in the second quarter. Denver got within two, but the Bucks hit nine of their last 10 shots of the first half to take a 64-53 lead at the break.

"Both teams were having shootarounds," Milwaukee coach Jason Kidd said.

Despite hot shooting, the Bucks had a lack of production from the foul line. Denver had committed just six fouls late into the third quarter, and O'Bryant had Milwaukee's first free-throw attempt with 1:47 left in the period.

The Nuggets wound up 17-for-24 from the foul line, while the Bucks were 8-for-9.

NOTES: The Nuggets announced that F Wilson Chandler will undergo right hip surgery and will miss the entire season. Chandler sustained a labral tear in the preseason. ... Milwaukee F Jabari Parker did not make the trip to Denver. The Bucks are easing him back from a torn left ACL sustained last December, and he played Tuesday in Milwaukee. G Michael Carter-Williams missed his fifth straight game with a sprained left ankle. Both players are expected to be ready for Saturday's game against Cleveland. ... Denver G Jameer Nelson (SI joint sprain) and C Joffrey Lauvergne (lower back strain) were out of the lineup. Nelson missed his second game in a row, and Lauvergne missed his fifth.