Jamal Murray scored 34 points, making six of Denver’s 16 3-pointers, and the Nuggets beat the Phoenix Suns 125-107 on Saturday night in Game 1 of their second-round series.
Reigning NBA MVP Nikola Jokic had 24 points and 19 rebounds, while Aaron Gordon finished with 23 points for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. But this was the Murray Show, where he shot 6 for 10 from 3-point ground and frequently called for more noise from the already raucous crowd.
Kevin Durant scored 29 points for the Suns, with Devin Booker adding 27 and Chris Paul 11. Booker averaged 37.2 points in the first-round series win over the Los Angeles Clippers.
Game two is Monday night in Denver.
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Nikola Jokic #15 of the Denver Nuggets smiles during Game One of the 2023 NBA Playoffs Western Conference Semifinals against the Phoenix Suns on April 29, 2023 at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. (Bart Young/NBAE via Getty Images)
This is a different playoff series than two years ago, when the Suns swept the Nuggets in the second round. Back then, Denver was without Murray after he tore his ACL.
Now healthy, Murray is showing off his 2020 form inside the NBA bubble that helped Denver advance to the Western Conference finals.
Murray had the play of the night when he stole a pass, split defensemen Paul and Durant at full speed and knocked down a layup off the top of the glass. He laid the multitude of capacity at his feet.
The dynamic point guard was far from done energizing the fans, hitting a three-pointer with just under 7 minutes to go. He pleaded with them for more noise, even putting a hand to his ear.
Denver Nuggets’ Jamal Murray (27) celebrates with the signature three-point gesture by Kentavious Caldwell-Popes (5) after Caldwell-Pope hit back-to-back 3-pointers against the Phoenix Suns during the second quarter at Ball Arena in Denver on Saturday . April 29, 2023. (AAron Ontiveroz/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images)
LEBRON JAMES DOES NOT SHAKE HANDS WITH THE GRIZZLIES AFTER KNOCKING THEM OUT OF THE PLAYOFFS
Leading 106-95 with 7:40 remaining, the Nuggets put together a 14-0 run to close out the game. Denver led by as many as 25 and improved to 38-7 at home during the regular season and playoffs.
The difference was the 3-point line, where the Nuggets outscored the Suns by a 48-21 margin.
To stop Durant, the Nuggets used a multitude of defenders. He was 12-for-19 from the floor, but 1-for-3 on 3-pointers. Durant has 4,730 playoff points to come close to passing Karl Malone (4,761) for seventh in the NBA postseason points standings.
TIPS
Suns: Suns coach Monty Williams used his challenge early, with 55.4 seconds left in the first quarter, when Booker was called for a charge on a made basket. It paid off when the call was overturned and Booker awarded a free kick, which he made. … Deandre Ayton scored 14 points.
Nuggets: Nuggets coach Michael Malone called a timeout 32 seconds into the second half to calm his team down. … Bruce Brown had 14 points.
Nikola Jokic #15 of the Denver Nuggets goes to the basket against Deandre Ayton #22 of the Phoenix Suns in the first quarter at Ball Arena on April 29, 2023 in Denver, Colorado. (Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
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PAUL PRAISE
As Paul approaches his 38th birthday next week, Malone said the one thing that hasn’t changed over the years is Paul’s elite competitiveness.
«He’ll be 55 years old, play in a recreational league in North Carolina, and still be the same,» Malone said. «The guy hates losing, he’s ultra-competitive and one of the best leaders I’ve ever been with… No matter what stage of his career he still finds a way to make an impact by winning at a high level.»