NUGGETS 98, CELTICS 91: Rookie Kenneth Faried had 18 points and a season-high 16 rebounds while not missing a shot as host Denver nearly blew a 16-point third-quarter lead before holding Boston without a field goal in the final 3:29.

Danilo Gallinari had 20 points for the Nuggets, who enjoyed a 46-27 rebounding advantage and defeated the Celtics for the seventh time in the last eight games in Denver.

Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett scored 22 points apiece and Rajon Rondo had 12 points and 16 assists for the Celtics, who fell to 2-3 on their season-high eight-game road trip.

Pierce picked up his fifth foul with 3:59 left in the third quarter and did not return until the 8:45 mark of the fourth with the Celtics trailing 85-75. His jumper with 4:07 left got Boston to within 87-85 before he fouled out on the next trip down the court.

Ty Lawson’s 3-pointer with 3:00 remaining put Denver in front 92-87 and Faried, who had six points and four rebounds in the final 3:51, scored on a dunk with 2:17 to go to make it 94-87.

Faried finished 5 for 5 from the field and 8 for 8 from the free-throw line and had six offensive rebounds.

Faried’s best game as a pro came on the anniversary of perhaps the finest moment of his college career. Faried had 12 points and 17 rebounds in Morehead State’s 62-61 upset of Louisville in the 2011 NCAA tournament – also in Denver on St. Patrick’s Day.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Nuggets center JaVale McGee, who was acquired at the trade deadline from Washington, did not play because his paperwork and physical were not completed in time. … Boston is 6-7 in the second of back-to-back games this season. … The Celtics’ Kevin Garnett became the 52nd NBA player in history with 5,000 career assists. … Boston is 22-11, including 9-10 in road games, on St. Patrick’s Day.