A sick Jamal Murray scores 25
points, Nuggets beat Thunder 119-107 to force Game 7
[May 16, 2025]
By ARNIE STAPLETON
DENVER (AP) — A sick Jamal Murray may have been questionable for
Game 6, but in his mind there was nothing ambiguous about his
playing status.
“Absolutely not,” Murray said when asked if there was any chance
he'd have sat out the game.
Murray scored 25 points and powered the Denver Nuggets past the
Thunder 119-107 Thursday night, sending the series back to Oklahoma
City for a decisive Game 7.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander also had no doubt.
“Yeah, I knew he was going to play, obviously in a do-or-die
situation for them,” SGA said. “And they came out with a sense of
urgency and jumped on us right away.”
After being sick for 24 hours, Murray ignited the Nuggets with a
four-point play to start things off and sank a step-back 3-pointer
to start the fourth quarter that pushed Denver's lead into double
digits.
Nikola Jokic led Denver with 29 points, 14 rebounds and eight
assists, and Christian Braun scored a career playoff-best 23 points.
But it was second-year reserve guard Julian Strawther who ignited
the Nuggets' runaway, scoring a career playoff-high 15 points, all
in the second half.
“Julian played huge for us, made real big shots," Aaron Gordon said.
“I don't think that's something that they game-planned for.”
Strawther had a pair of 3s and a layup during the decisive 10-0
third-quarter spurt and he kept making big plays at both ends in the
fourth quarter as the Nuggets finally had a laugher in this
exhaustive, physical series.
Case in point: Strawther lost a crown in the fourth quarter. A
ballboy retrieved the artificial tooth from the circle when the
action went to the other end.
Gordon grabbed at his left hamstring late in the game and hobbled
through the final few minutes, but he insisted he'd be fine for Game
7, which is Sunday, with the Minnesota Timberwolves awaiting the
winner after dispatching Golden State in five games.
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Denver Nuggets guard Julian Strawther reacts after hitting a 3-point
basket late in the second half of Game 6 in the Western Conference
semifinals of the NBA basketball playoffs against the Oklahoma City
Thunder Thursday, May 15, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David
Zalubowski)
If he's good to go, that would be a huge relief for
Denver interim coach David Adelman, who called Gordon “the reason
why we've won games and won series and have a banner hanging up.”
Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 32 points, but he didn’t get
enough help from his teammates to clinch Oklahoma City's first trip
to the Western Conference Finals since 2016. All-Star Jalen Williams
scored six points on 3-of-16 shooting.
The Nuggets, who won the title two years ago, finally get two days
off after a grueling past few weeks. They have played every other
day since April 29.
“The guys in there looked like they were happier to have tomorrow
off than they were about going to a Game 7,” Adelman said.
The Thunder have only lost back-to-back games twice this season,
once in November and once in early April. However, this will be the
current iteration's first win-or-go-home game.
“First of all, credit Denver — they threw a punch tonight as has
happened in the series, both teams are exchanging blows," Thunder
coach Mark Daigneault said. “They got theirs in tonight, and both
teams have done a great job of standing back up, including us, and
we need to do that on Sunday.”
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