On the opening night of their second-round series, the Denver Nuggets dominated the Phoenix Suns with a 125-107 victory. Now, when the Nuggets take the court at the Ball Arena in Denver at 10:00 p.m. EDT on Monday, they’ll be hoping to take a commanding 2-0 lead.
Update Injury for Denver Nuggets – Phoenix Suns
The Phoenix Suns lost Game 1 of their playoff series against the top-seeded Denver Nuggets by a score of 125-107 on Saturday.
The Nuggets jumped up to an early lead and never looked back, dominating this game from start to finish.
Jamal Murray poured in 34 points on the strength of 6 three-pointers and 9 dimes.
In the fourth, Murray iced the game with two clutch three-pointers on consecutive possessions.
With 24 points and 19 boards, Nikola Jokic was being Nikola Jokic.
Jokic, who averaged 12.4 boards per game in Denver’s first-round series win over Minnesota, outworked Deandre Ayton repeatedly on Saturday to lead the Nuggets to a lopsided victory. The eight offensive boards that Jokic grabbed were the same number the Suns grabbed as a team.
With his help, Jamal Murray was able to score 34 points and dish out nine assists, making the Nuggets as dangerous as ever.
Collin Gillespie is still not on the active roster for Denver, although he has yet to play this season. His absence will have no bearing on the outcome of the game.
The Phoenix Suns were not expected to win game one; after all, the higher seeded club usually wins the first game of a series at home.
The Suns are merely the fourth seed in the West despite widespread belief that they are the best club in the conference.
Before losing 125-107 on Saturday, they had won all but one game with Kevin Durant. The setback on Saturday was of a worrying sort.
Although Phoenix had a slight advantage in field goal percentage, the Nuggets won the game because they forced 16 turnovers from the Suns. As a result, they turned the ball over 16 times and were unable to get as many boards, resulting in 17 fewer shot attempts. Phoenix was led by Durant’s 29 points and 14 rebounds, and it was complemented by Booker’s 27 points.
Durant took advantage of Denver’s smaller wings by sinking his trademark midrange shots and going 4 for 4 from the free throw line. In addition, he grabbed 36.8 percent of the Suns’ boards.
With Deandre Ayton having had a team-worst minus-21 in his minutes played, it’s probable that this trend may continue.
