Nuggets rebel against Thunder and force a seventh game

Resisting elimination, the Denver Nuggets defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 119-107 on Thursday and extended this NBA Western Conference semifinal to a seventh and final game.

Nikola Jokic, with 29 points and 14 rebounds, and Jamal Murray, with 25, led the Nuggets, champions in 2023, who forced a 3-3 series tie.

Young guard Julian Strawther, an American and Puerto Rican national, was the unexpected factor in Denver's victory with 15 points and key baskets off the bench.

The Thunder of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (32 points), the best team in the regular phase, will host the deciding game on Sunday with the pressure of avoiding a second consecutive elimination in this round.

The winner will face the Minnesota Timberwolves, who on Wednesday knocked off the Golden State Warriors by a 4-1 aggregate score, in the West final.

In the East, the Indiana Pacers await the opponent of the series between the Boston Celtics and the New York Knicks, who dominate the latter 3-2.

The Serbian Jokic and the Canadian Murray, one of the best duos in the NBA, again exploited the few cracks in the reputed defense of Oklahoma City, which on offense suffered from the terrible night of All-Star forward Jalen Williams, with 6 points on 3-16 shooting from the field.

The Thunder have not reached the conference finals since 2016, when their leaders were Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, now an opponent in this series in a Denver uniform.

Murray ill

A few hours before the opening tip-off, the Nuggets gave their fans a scare by reporting that Murray was doubtful for the game due to illness.

"No way" I was going to miss the game, the point guard, a player who elevates his play each season in the playoffs, said after the win.

"When he woke up, there was a good chance he wasn't going to play. He was on fluids all day," Coach David Adelman explained. "I was watching him for the first six minutes to see if he really could. But he's Jamal Murray; he's a very tough guy."

Murray and Jokic this time had the unexpected support of Strawther, a player with an almost testimonial presence in these playoffs.

The 23-year-old shooting guard hit three three-pointers out of four attempts at pivotal moments when the Nuggets hit two spurts late in the second and third quarters.

"Julian not only helped us a lot with the 15 points, he also did it on defense," Adelman noted.

The Thunder dominated the first half with leads as large as 12 points, but their leader, Gilgeous-Alexander, was saddled with four personal fouls before halftime.

Denver made up ground with a 12-0 run to go into the locker room trailing by just three points (61-58).

The Nuggets also closed the third quarter strong thanks to three baskets by Strawther, opening an eight-point gap and generating momentum in their favor that Oklahoma City could no longer neutralize.

"They outplayed us in the second half. They were sharper; they made better plays.... You've got to hand it to them," Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said.

"Both teams are trading blows. Tonight it was them, but they've both done a great job of picking themselves up, and we've got to do that on Sunday," Daigneault demanded.