Jamal Murray, Nikola Jokic Lead Denver Nuggets to Game 1 Rout of Phoenix Suns

• The Denver Nuggets defeated the Phoenix Suns in their series opener
• Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic starred in the Nuggets’ victory
• The Nuggets knocked down 16 three-pointers against the Suns

The Denver Nuggets opened the Western Conference semifinals with a bang, crushing the Phoenix Suns in Game 1 of their best-of-seven series on Saturday night.

Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic led the Nuggets, who recorded an emphatic 125-107 win over the Suns at Ball Arena.

They combined for 58 points in the series opener.

Murray, Nuggets rain down threes

The Nuggets torched the Suns from deep, knocking down 16 of their 37 attempts from the 3-point area.

Denver outscored Phoenix by a 48-21 margin on points beyond the arc in Game 1, per ESPN.

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Jamal Murray made the Suns pay for their poor defense outside, draining six 3-pointers in Game 1.

Murray finished the game with 34 points, nine assists, and five rebounds in 37 minutes. 

He helped the Nuggets pull away in the fourth quarter after the Suns had cut the lead to 10 points with less than nine minutes remaining. Jamal Murray fueled an 18-3 run to push Denver’s advantage up to 25 points.

He went on a solo 8-0 blast during that stretch, including making back-to-back threes, sending the fans in attendance into a frenzy.

Jokic and Gordon also contribute

Jokic also had a monster game, posting a double-double with 24 points and 19 rebounds.

It wasn’t just Murray and Jokic who punished the Suns’ defense, as four other Denver players scored in double figures.

Aaron Gordon played one of his best playoff games as a Nugget, scoring 23 points on 9 of 13 shooting.   

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Michael Porter Jr. and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope were the other starters to score in double digits for Denver, dropping 11 and 10 points, respectively.

Bruce Brown provided the firepower off the bench, scoring 14 points for Denver.

Kevin Durant scored 29 points and grabbed 14 rebounds for the Suns, who lost on the road for the first time in this year’s playoffs. Devin Booker added 27 points.

Kings force Game 7

Sports Brief recently reported on Sacramento’s win over Golden State in Game 6.

Malik Monk and De'Aaron Fox starred for the Kings, combining for 54 points in the 118-99 win.

Action shifts to Sacramento for the winner-take-all Game 7 this coming Sunday.