TORONTO -- Lou Williams scored 26 points, including a big three-pointer in overtime, to lift the Toronto Raptors 112-107 over the Denver Nuggets on Monday.
Jonas Valanciunas -- with 18 points and 12 rebounds -- and Kyle Lowry -- with 13 points and 13 assists -- both had double-doubles on the night for the Eastern Conference-leading Raptors (16-5).
Patrick Patterson added 19, while Terrence Ross finished with 16 for Toronto, which was playing their fifth game without injured all-star DeMar DeRozan.
Arron Afflalo had 25 to top the Nuggets (9-12), in their fourth straight loss. Ty Lawson added 22.
Toronto led by as many as 17 points in front of an Air Canada Centre capacity crowd of 19,800 that included former Raptor Charles Oakley, and looked poised to cruise to an easy win.
But the Nuggets chipped away at the deficit during the third and pulled to 82-81 going into the fourth quarter.
The Raptors couldn't buy a basket in the fourth, jacking up long-range shots that missed the mark until they found themselves trailing by five points with 2:41 to go.
Patterson connected for two three-pointers within two minutes, his second pulling the Raptors even at 102-102 with 28 seconds left. Then with the ACC crowd on its feet, Denver turned the ball over on a shot-clock violation, sending the game into overtime.
When Lowry found Johnson under the basket with 2:10 to go, it put the Raptors up 109-105. Then, with 54 seconds left, Williams stepped back and calmly drained a three, and the Raptors were up by seven.
Toronto is 14-0 this season after leading after three quarters, a streak that actually stretches back 39 games to April 1, 2013.
The Raptors have now allowed opponents to score 100-plus points in eight straight games.
Denver were missing Kenneth Faried (back) and Nate Robinson (back).
Valanciunas led the way with 10 points and five boards in a first quarter that saw the Nuggets shoot a whopping 68 per cent. A pair of Williams free throws gave the Raptors a seven-point lead with 30 seconds to go, and they led 35-30 to end the quarter.
Williams scored nine straight points early in the second to help the Raptors to a 17-point lead, and Toronto took a 62-52 advantage into the halftime break.
The Raptors saw their double-digit disappear in the third, as the Nuggets outscored them 29-20 in the frame. Denver used a 22-7 run to pull to within a point on a jumper by Affalo with 2:09 left in the quarter, and led by one going into the fourth.
The Raptors were coming off their worst offensive performance of the season in a 105-91 loss last Friday to the Cavaliers. They face LeBron James and the Cavs again Tuesday in Cleveland.
They're back home to host the Indiana Pacers on Friday.
