Gary Harris scored 24 points and Nikola Jokic recorded a double-double, leading the Denver Nuggets to a 105-92 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Saturday night at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, Calif.

Jokic posted 20 points and 14 rebounds for the Nuggets (31-35), who have won three of their last four games. Danilo Gallinari scored 15 points. Jamal Murray came off the bench to score 14, including some big baskets in the fourth quarter.

"(Murray) just turned 20 years old," Denver coach Michael Malone said. "He's not afraid of the moment. This is a big game for us, and Jamal was instrumental down the stretch."

Buddy Hield scored 17 points for the Kings (25-41), who lost their eighth straight. Tyreke Evans had 16 points off the bench. Willie Cauley-Stein scored 13 points and Kosta Koufos had 10 points and eight rebounds.

Denver led by five on a couple occasions early in the first quarter before Sacramento came back to tie the game on a jumper by Aaron Afflalo. The Nuggets responded with an 8-0 run to take a 23-15 lead on a basket by Jameer Nelson.

The Nuggets went up 33-21 following a pair of 3-pointers by Juancho Hernangomez early in the second period. They stretched the lead to 14 on a 3-pointer by Murray. The Kings cut the deficit to 11 on a 3-pointer by Hield and trailed 54-44 at the break after Hield made a driving layup late in the first half.

Denver went up by 12 early in the third quarter. Sacramento responded with a 7-0 run to cut the deficit to five on a 3-pointer by Hield. The Kings got within two on a jumper by Cauley-Stein, but the Nuggets quickly regained control and took a 71-61 lead on a 3-pointer by Harris.

The Nuggets went up by 12 again in the fourth quarter before the Kings battled back to get within four on a basket by Evans. Murray and Gallinari made big 3-pointers down the stretch to help Denver withstand the charge.

Denver holds a two-game lead over Portland for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Portland lost to Washington in overtime Saturday.

"Is it great that they lost?" Malone said. "Sure, but it wouldn't have mattered if we didn't win. We have to handle our business every single night. We have 16 games to go and it's not going to be easy."

The Nuggets are 7-5 since acquiring Mason Plumlee from the Trail Blazers. Plumlee had eight points, eight assists, seven rebounds and three blocked shots against the Kings.

Sacramento remained committed to its youth movement nearly three weeks after trading star big man DeMarcus Cousins to New Orleans. The Kings beat the Nuggets in their first game without Cousins, but are winless since as coach Dave Joerger has allocated more playing time to first- and second-year players such as Hield, Cauley-Stein and Skal Labissiere.

"You've got to learn to win in this league," Hield said. "It's a process. It doesn't happen overnight. We've got young guys like me, Willie and Skal playing a lot of minutes, so we've just got to keep learning and growing."

NOTES: Denver PF Nikola Jokic was in the lineup for the second night in a row after missing two games because of illness. ... Nuggets coach Michael Malone praised SG Gary Harris' effort in a victory over Boston on Friday, saying his defense on Celtics star Isaiah Thomas "was inspiring." ... Sacramento SG Tyreke Evans returned after being held out of Friday's game against Washington. The Kings are giving Evans one night off to rest in all back-to-back situations.