The Denver Nuggets will head to Los Angeles with a 2-0 lead, and all it took was an appearance by Bubble Jamal Murray. Plus the usual from Nikola Jokic.
The Nuggets guard looked like the version of himself that gained fame in the 2020 playoffs with a 37-point performance on Thursday, leading the Nuggets to a 108-103 win over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game Two of the Western Conference finals.
Game Three is scheduled for Saturday at the Crypto.com Arena.
Murray’s 37 points led all scorers, and he also finished with 10 rebounds, five assists and four steals. Meanwhile, Jokic had a monster night with 23 points, 17 rebounds, 12 assists and three steals.
Murray entered the fourth quarter with only 14 points, then threw down 23, coming one point short of outscoring the entire Lakers team.
It was an uneven game for the Lakers, who held a significant lead for much of the second and third quarters before the Nuggets took firm control in the fourth.
Rui Hachimura (21 points on 8-of-10 shooting) and Austin Reaves (22 with 5-of-9 3-point shooting) were good, D’Angelo Russell (10 on 3-of-8) not so much.
Even LeBron James had some regrettable moments in a night where he was one rebound from a triple-double at 22 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists.
By the end of the game, both teams looked gassed, but the Nuggets had the player who couldn’t miss. It was good enough to push them halfway to their first NBA Finals appearance in franchise history. (Yahoo)
