Nikola Jokic scores 26 points, Jamal Murray adds 24 and the Denver Nuggets accelerate towards the end beating the Phoenix Suns 130-112 on the night between Saturday and Sunday.
The Nuggets shoot with scorching percentages from the arc: 22 triples on 38 attempts (57.9%), 10 in the first half and another 12 in the second half, guaranteeing a constant flow of points. Tim Hardaway Jr. is a factor off the bench with 23 points and a brilliant 7/11 from three.
Jokic — on the court very little in the fourth quarter — finished without shooting errors (7/7), added 10 assists and nine rebounds, coming close to his eleventh triple double of the season.
Denver extends to 96-85 at the end of the third quarter, thanks to eight triples in the half. Phoenix comes back to -9 at the start of the fourth quarter, but the Nuggets respond with a 12-0 run that takes them to 110-89, definitively splitting the game.
The Nuggets thus redeem themselves after Friday’s defeat against the Spurs. The Suns, however, suffered defeat number three of their last four games.
Dillon Brooks led Phoenix with 27 points (10/18 shooting). Devin Booker scores 24, with 14/15 from the foul line.
At halftime the Nuggets lead 63-60, thanks to a 10/16 from three (62.5%). Jokic already has 18 points, Hardaway has 17. Brooks keeps the Suns afloat with 19.
Grayson Allen returns to the field after more than two weeks out due to a quadriceps contusion: 10 points for him.
Upcoming commitments
Nuggets: Monday at home against the Dallas Mavericks.
Suns: Monday in Los Angeles against the Lakers.
