Suns 104 - 97 Nuggets summary stats, scores and highlights | NBA

The Suns pulled away early in the 2nd quarter and never looked back. The closest Denver would get was within three points, but Phoenix looked in control the entire way. 

The win not only gives Denver just their 7th home loss, but brings them closer to the Mavricks hold the 6th seed and final automatic playoff spot, while the Nuggets drop a game which will open the door for the Thunder to take the one seed back in the West. 

With no Jusuf Nurkic, it was Drew Eubanks filling in down low. He had just 5 points and 4 rebounds but he help Jokic to 22, 9 and 10 assists which sounds like a big night but he was held quiet for most of the game. 

KD and the Suns have one of the toughest imaginable schedules to end the season, but they came up with a huge win to give themselves confidence going into the final stretch and into the playoffs. 

KD was unstoppable on the offensive end, but defensively he changed the game. He had 5 blocks to go along with his 30 points in a game that the Nuggets struggled to find their flow without Jamal Murray. 

The Suns hit 10 of their 19 first half three pointers, and for a team that doesn't shoot it particularly well from DT, they will take that start against the defending champs. Allen had 13 points including this deep three as Phoenix ended the night 48.5% from downtown. 

The Phoenix Suns went into the defending champions house and got a massive road win as they continue their pursuit of the six seed in the West. Kevin Durant led all scorers with 30 points and 13 rebounds as the Suns took it 104-97.

It was KD who led the way, but Bradley Beal set the tone early. Beal was questionable coming into the night with a sprained finger, but came out hot and hit a couple of three ball to start the night for Phoenix. The Suns know they have limited time to get Beal, Durant and Booker some final run in the regular season before the postseason comes rolling around. 

MPJ with the put back and that's going to do it. 

Booker to the line and he hits both FTs after the foul on Jackson. Timeout Denver with 27.2 to go. 

Jackson was allowed a path to the rack so he lays it up and in although he was looking for someone on the perimeter. 

MPJ with the jam and he unleashes some frustration on the rim. 

Jackson hits the fader from outside the lane with a minute to go. 

Jokic pulled up from half court knowing the foul was coming on the break and the refs awarded him three FTs. PHO want the refs to take another look at the play. 

Jokic to the line and he hits both FTs after the foul on Beal. 

Allen with the runner across the lane and hits it over Jokic. 

KCP cuts back door and Gordon found him for the lay up. 

KD turns in the lane and gets the fader to fall. He's got 30 on the night. 

Timeout Suns with 4:33 to go in the 4th. 

Jokic in the paint and gets the jump hook to fall. 

Durant strings a three ball from the top of the key!

Watson gets the offensive board off the Jokic miss and pus it back up and in. 

Pull up from Allen and he drills the three ball from the wing!

O'Neale with the catch and shoot from the wing and he drills it. 

Watson following the miss from Gordon and he tips it up and in. 

Jokic goes up and under in the lane. 

Watson to the line and he hits one of two after the foul on Watson. 

Gordon floats it off the glass from down the lane. 

Gordon in the corner and he drills the three ball!

Offensive board for Young and the kick out to Gordon who takes it to the cup for the lay in. 

Young with the jump hook in the lane to start the 4th quarter. 

We are headed to the fourth quarter with the Suns up by 10!

Young off the pick and roll and he finger rolls it up and in down the lane. 

Jackson on the step back and he drills the three ball!

Jackson drives to the rack and gets the lay up to go. 

KD on the turnaround fader from outside the lane. 

Allen kicks it to the corner for Gordon who drills the three ball! 

Timeout Suns with under 3:00 to go in the 3rd quarter. 

Booker steps into a three ball in transition and drills the deep ball. 

KD breaks the 12-0 Nuggets run with a turn around on the baseline. 

Jokic backing down in the lane, gets the contact and the foul! FT is good. 

Jokic drills the three ball from the wing out of the timeout!

Timeout Nuggets with 5:55 to go in the 3rd quarter. 

Jokic with the turnaround jumper in the lane. 

Gordon to the line after the foul on Allen and he hits both FTs. 

Jokic breaks the PHO run with a floater from inside the FT line. 

Booker to the line and he hits both FTs after the foul on KCP. 10-0 run for PHO. 

Lay off from Booker and KD steps into a three ball!

Durant goes reverse on the drive across the lane. 

Eubanks down the lane and he jams it over Jokic, and gets the foul! FT is good. 

KD turned it over and KCP lobs it up to Gordon on the break and he slams home the alley oop!

KD pulls up from the mid range and drills the elbow jumper. 

Jackson pump fakes, drives and double clutches to the rim for the lay up. 

WE ARE BACK IN PLAY FROM DENVER!!!

MPJ has been stepping up for the last month, and tonight he has been hot from the field. He's got 14 and 4 rebounds. Jokic has been quiet, he's got just 6 pts, 3 rebounds and 7 assists.

With Jusuf Nurkic out due to injury the big guys stepped up and played a big role. Drew Eubanks and Bol Bol had their moments against the Nuggets defense. Bol's got 8 off the bench and Eubanks has 2 and 3 rebounds. 

The Nuggets don't have Jamal Murray, so that means they are going to need everyone else to step up. KCP is one of those guys that has risen to the occasion, Gordon is another. He's got 11 on 5/8 shooting. 

The Suns hit 10 of their 19 first half three pointers, and for a team that doesn't shoot it particularly well from DT, they will take that start against the defending champs. 

It was Beal who got the Suns going, but the Nuggets had KCP come out of the gates hot from downtown. He's had three first quarter triples and has 11 at the break. 

Beal was questionable coming into the night with a sprained finger, but came out hot and hit a couple of three ball to start the night for Phoenix. The Suns know they have limited time to get Beal, Durant and Booker some final run in the regular season before the postseason comes rolling around. 

Young gets the offensive board and the put back at the buzzer!

WE ARE HEADED TO HALFTIME FROM DENVER! 

The Sun take a 7 point lead to the locker room here from Ball Arena. 

Durant fades away from the elbow and that's going to do it for the first half!

Beal to the line after the foul on Gillespie and he hits one of two FTs. 

Extra pass from Gillespie to MPJ who drills the corner three! He's got 14 on the night. 

KD with the baseline J out of the timeout. 

KCP with the entry pass to Jokic and he turns and finishes at the rim. 

Timeout Suns with 2:26 to go in the 1st half. 

Bol hits the baseline jumper over Gordon. 

Jokic with a shot put from outside the lane and drops it. 

Gillespie drills a three ball in the corner off the shovel pass from Jokic. 

Aaron Gordon gets the lay up to got and the foul! FT is good. 

Bol Bol left open on the perimeter and he drills his second three off the bench. 

Slip pass from Jackson to Gordon on the baseline and he slams it home!

Allen drills a three ball from the top of the key!

MPJ hits a long two with a foot on the line. 

KCP out of the timeout and he hits the mid range jumper. He's got 11 on the night. 

Eubanks jams it off the Durant dish and the Nuggets take a timeout. 

MPJ driving down the lane and he slams it home. 

Bol in the corner and he drills it out of the timeout. 

Extra pass from Bol to Gordon who drills the three ball and the Nuggets call a timeout with 8:20 to go in the half. 

O'Neale gets the offensive board and the put back on the baseline. 

Durant gets the roll on the off balanced pull up from the mid range. 

Strawther down the lane and gets the floater to go. 

KD with the drive from the right side and he puts it up and in off the glass and gets the foul. FT is good. 

We are at the end of the first quarter and it's tied after both teams started off hot from downtown. 

Gillespie fouled by O'Neal and he hits both FTs. 

Booker gets into the lane and fades away with the jumper inside the FT line. 

Gillespie left open at the top of the key and he drills the three ball. 

Beal with his third triple of the first quarter, he hits this one from the wing!

KCP with his third triple of the game, this one from the far corner. 

Booker gets fouled on the runner, gets it off the glass and the foul! FT is good. 

MPJ to the line after the foul on Eubanks and hits both FTs. 

Allen down the lane and he hits the off balanced floater in the lane. 

Five straight points for MPJ who strokes a three from the wing off the JOkic kickout. 

MPJ out of the timeout and he hits the spot up over the defender. 

Allen chases down the long rebound and drills the three ball from the top of the key .

Timeout Nuggets with 6:12 to go in the first quarter. 

Dump off to Gordon from Jackson and he throws down the reverse jam. 

Booker on the board with a three ball from the top of the key after the dish from Beal. 

We are heading to our first timeout with 7:28 to go in the 1st. 

KD in the corner off the dish from Allen. 

Gordon backing down Allen and he lays it up off the glass. 

KCP steps back from the wing and he's got two triples to his account already. 

KD to the line after the foul on KCP and he hits both FTs. 

KCP gets the offensive rebound and slips it to Gordon slashing to the rack for the jam!

Booker gets the floater to fall in the lane. 

Jokic down low and he turns and hits the short shot in the lane. 

Beal starts off the game with back-to-back triples. 

KCP with the catch and shoot off the Jokic dish on the perimeter. 

Beal gets us going with a three ball in the corner after the extra pass from Booker. 

WE ARE UNDERWAY FROM DENVER!

Jamal Murray is out for a third straight game after twisting his ankle late in the game against the Knicks last week. That means Reggie Jackson is starting at point guard with MPJ, KCP , Gordon and Jokic. 

The good news for the Suns is Bradely Beal's sprained finger is feeling well enough to allow him to play. The bad news is Jusuf Nurkic will be out tonight as Drew Eubanks steps to the starting five with Beal, Allen, KD and Booker. 

How the West is looking

Taking a look at the Western Conference standings, we see the Denver Nuggets at the top of the table after their stretch of 9 wins over the last 10 games. It’s a three team race to the finish line at the top of the West, as OKC and Minnesota look to keep pace with the defending champions. A little farther down the table the Suns are sitting in Play-In position after their loss to the Spurs. Those in 7th-11th place will be gunning for the 6th spot currently held by the Mavericks who are 8 games back of the Nuggets. The Suns and the Kings are a game back of the Mavericks and two games ahead of the 9th placed Lakers. It is going to be tight until the end in the race for the final automatic playoff bid. 

MPJ, the other other MVP

The Denver Nuggets almost have an embarrassment of riches when it comes to their starting five. Each and every one of them have the ability to take over a game in a moments notice, and Michael Porter Jr. has been proving that over the last week or so. He may be a tad overlooked because of the superstars he is surrounded by, but on a different team he would be a number one scoring option and in the conversation for being an All-Star. He’s averaging 16.9 points, 7 rebounds and 1.5 assists this year, and if the Nuggets are going to go back-to-back, MPJ is going to have to be a big piece of the puzzle. 

Internal battle

Whose team is it? That’s been the question plaguing the Suns for the entire season. Bradley Beal came to the desert this offseason, knowing his role was going to be a second or third option on the offensive end. While the newest addition of the team seems to know his role, there is a bit of a conflict between Kevin Durant and Devin Booker. Who is going to have the ball in their hands more? Who is going to get more shots? Who is going to get the ball when the game is on the line? We saw a bit of hesitancy from both players on the final possession of the Suns loss to the Spurs on Monday night. This team needs to figure out who is going to play what role, and it might be up to coach Frank Vogel to delegate 

Nuggets last game

The Nuggets took the out and out lead in the Western Conference with their win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday night. Denver went wire to wire over the Grizzlies thanks to another day at the office for Nikola Jokic who had 29, 11 and 8 assists in the victory. The Nuggets went up double digits early in the first quarter, and never looked back. They had a comfortable cushion on Memphis all night long, as the lead stretched to over 30 points, and they eased to a 25 point victory as the starters got a well deserved rest in the fourth quarter. 

Suns last game

The Suns played back to back games in San Antonio and split the two game series. They won the first game in a blowout but dropped the second of the two games to a Spurs team that had Victor Wembanyama on the bench sidelined with an injury. Devin Booker led the Suns with 36 points, as the game went down to the wire. Jermey Sochan hit a go ahead three with 29 seconds to go, leaving the Suns not one but two chances to tie or take the lead but Kevin Durant missed a three pointer and after getting the offensive rebound off KD’s miss Devin Booker missed the game winning three as the clock expired.  

We are live from Mile High 

Hello everyone and welcome to Ball Arena where the Denver Nuggets have ridden a four game win streak to the top of the Western Conference and are in position to wrap up a second straight one seed in the West. They have won nine of ten, and look to be playing their best ball at the right time. They have a chance to widen their cushion on the rest of the pack hunting for the one seed with a win tonight over a Phoenix Suns team that have their eyes set on an automatic playoff birth, but after their loss to the Spurs on Monday night they are currently in the thick of the Play-In position. Tonight they will go up against the defending champions, hoping to sneak out of the Mile High City with a win. 

Suns vs. Nuggets  

We’ve got a Western Conference showdown from Ball Arena as the league leaders host a team desperately trying to keep their head above water in the race for an automatic playoff spot. Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets host Kevin Durant and the Phoenix Suns from the Mile High City and AS English will be with you all night providing live coverage, stats, highlights and analysis of tonight’s game from Denver.