The Denver Nuggets bounced back in a big way tonight following two straight loses to the Phoenix Suns that allowed them to get back into the series. Denver asserted their dominance once again tonight courtesy of a dominant second half in which they outscored Phoenix 66-53 en route to a 118-102 victory to win game five at home. With the win, the Nuggets are just one victory away from an appearance in the Western Conference Finals.
What really set the tone for Denver was the play of Michael Porter Jr., whose 14 first quarter points really got the Nuggets going from the jump. Even though they struggled to score in the second quarter — Suns outscored Denver 25-17 in the period — the Nuggets bounced back in a big way in the second half to secure the win. Nikola Jokic was big in the second half and recorded a triple-double of 29 points, 13 rebounds, and 12 assists.
Jokic was the Nuggets leading scorer, but not far behind him was Bruce Brown, who dropped 25 points off the bench and played with some great energy on both ends of the court. Porter and Jamal Murray finished with 19 points a piece, while Aaron Gordon also finished in double-figures with 10 points.
Where the game really started to shift was in the third quarter as Denver outscored Phoenix 39-25 in the period after allowing the Suns to get back into the game. The Nuggets once 15-point first half lead quickly evaporated in the second quarter, but Denver came out of the halftime locker room and played like a team with a sense of urgency. Hopefully that carries over into game six as the Suns are certainly going to come out with some energy at home with their season on the line.
Denver will look to punch their ticket to the Western Conference Finals on Thursday night in Phoenix. Tip-off for that game is set for 8PM MST and will be televised nationally on ESPN.
