Denver, CO
Recap: Denver Nuggets win big against the Phoenix Suns – Denver Stiffs
The Denver Nuggets started the first half of their home and home with the Phoenix Suns at Ball Arena on Monday night. Both teams were shorthanded with the Nuggets missing Jamal Murray and the Suns missing Devin Booker. The other stars for both teams did their parts but the Nuggets had far more support, including a very solid night from their group of young reserves. Nikola Jokic and Michael Porter Jr. did most of the heavy lifting and that pair plus the young bench was a formula for a blowout as Denver wins 117-90.
Phoenix got an early lead through sharing the ball among their starters while Denver didn’t get a ton of easy shots but hit their threes to keep it close. Porter had a hot start to keep Denver afloat in the middle of the first but their collective defense was lacking. MPJ was relentless, an and-one put him up to twelve points in the quarter and tied the game at seventeen. Jalen Pickett and Hunter Tyson got minutes down the stretch of the first to leave Denver’s lineup as Jokic + the bench. There wasn’t a ton of offense outside of Joker but the defense was strong and that got the Nuggets a lead. After one quarter it was 27-26 Denver.
Perfectly placed pic.twitter.com/vqMcDZ6iEB
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) December 24, 2024
There wasn’t much offense to speak of to start the second quarter but the bench unit’s defense continued to be impressive. They kept Phoenix from getting a point for over two minutes and made everything difficult. Pickett had a solid shift in particular for the reserve group and helped grow the lead to five before Russell Westbrook and Jokic checked back in (Jokic immediately buried a three). Shortly after they checked back in Jokic got stepped on by Jusuf Nurkic and looked to be in pain but stayed in the game. After that, Durant started getting to the free throw line to spark an 11-0 Phoenix run to get the lead back for the Suns briefly. Denver’s starters responded, Jokic started giving Nurkic want some refer to as “the business” and the Nuggets took back the lead. After two quarters they were up 55-51.
Braun throw down ⏬ pic.twitter.com/xI4ZtEJr39
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) December 24, 2024
Jokic and Porter got right back to it to start the second half. After a Westbrook jam pushed the lead to eleven the Suns were forced to take an early timeout. Phoenix stopped the bleeding after that but weren’t able to make much headway on Denver’s lead either. Westbrook came alive and led an energetic shift for the starters that could have blown the game wide open if not for Bradley Beal. Aaron Gordon got in on the action by knocking down threes and suddenly the lead was up above twenty. Denver’s defense got a little bit lazy after that and Phoenix was able to work the lead back down for a little bit. They trimmed it back under fifteen but a strong close in the final minute put Denver back up big. After three they led 100-79.
TAKING THAT TO GO pic.twitter.com/r8WetN9thk
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) December 24, 2024
Michael Malone opened the fourth with a DeAndre Jordan plus the kids lineup (Pickett, Julian Strawther, Tyson, Peyton Watson) and they struggled to score but once again had enough defense to hold the Suns at bay. Strawther knocked down some threes and was essentially the only one getting any points until Tyson, who was as energetic as ever, hustled up a rebound and then went coast to coast with a huge jam. The DJ + bench group continued to play solid minutes and eventually made time a factor as they held the twenty plus lead through the middle of the fourth. Malone emptied the bench and gave the two-way contract guys some game time with just under four minutes to go. They kept up the energy and Denver wins big, 117-90.
A third triple for Julian 🪣 pic.twitter.com/XFsyKg2fPI
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) December 24, 2024
Jokic and Porter was a two headed monster
Without Murray the Nuggets needed Porter to step up tonight and he did exactly that. He came out aggressive and wasn’t afraid to go shot for shot with an all-time great in Durant. He carried Denver through big chunks of the game and when he wasn’t, it was Nikola instead. Joker was in a bit of a scoring slump coming into tonight but that didn’t last. He led all scorers with thirty-two points and went four of six from the three point line. Nurkic looked completely helpless at times and got into foul trouble quickly trying to contain the three-time MVP. Denver got on runs with the help of some other guys too but Porter and Jokic were the players they could rely on consistently to get buckets when they needed them. It goes to show how valuable a guy like MPJ can be when he’s a focal point of the offense and playing off an all time great like Nikola.
The young bench gets it done
HUNTER WITH THE SLAM pic.twitter.com/J8FNmBxUPN
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) December 24, 2024
Malone leaned on his young reserves heavily tonight, comprising his bench group entirely out of his steady veteran in Jordan, and players with less than three full seasons of NBA experience. It wasn’t always pretty on the offensive end but that group brought consistent energy and focus on defense to keep Phoenix from cutting into the lead. Denver’s pair of 2023 second round draft picks, Pickett and Tyson, both had nice games. You could see Pickett’s confidence grow as the game went on and he looked every bit of an NBA backup point guard tonight. Tyson didn’t score a ton but brought a ton of energy to the floor and helped shore up one of Denver’s biggest weaknesses: defensive rebounding. If those two guys can continue to put together solid rotation minutes it’s going to be an absolute boon for Denver.
March Madness returns to Denver for a second straight year, with eight teams coming to compete at Ball Arena across four first-round games and a pair of second-round games.
The opening-round games are Thursday, and the second-round games are Saturday.
In the East Region, Ball Arena drew a No. 3 seed in Wisconsin and a No. 6 seed in BYU. Plus, in the South Region, Denver will host a No. 4 seed in Texas A&M and a No. 5 seed in Michigan.
Wisconsin takes on No. 14 Montana, while BYU plays No. 11 VCU. Texas A&M takes on No. 13 Yale, while Michigan plays No. 13 UC San Diego. This week marks the 11th NCAA Tournament in Denver. Last year, there were no upsets in the games at Ball Arena.
Both Wisconsin and Michigan have played for the national title in the last decade. The Badgers lost to Duke in 2015, while Michigan lost to Villanova in 2018. The Wolverines have played in eight Final Fours and were national champions in 1989, while the Badgers have played in four Final Fours and were national champions in 1941.
VCU made the Final Four as a Cinderella in 2011, when it was a No. 11 seed and lost to Butler. The Atlantic-10 champions could be a Cinderella again this year, plus there are a few others capable of pulling upsets in Denver. Ivy League champion Yale has the depth to potentially make some noise, while UC San Diego enters March Madness on a 15-game winning streak, tied for the nation’s longest.
Unfortunately for local hoop heads, there isn’t a single Colorado high school basketball product on any of the teams coming to Denver.
Here’s everything to know about the eight teams coming to Ball Arena. As of Sunday, tickets to the games were still available. Last year, the games sold out.
East Region
No. 3 Wisconsin (26-9) vs. No. 14 Montana (25-9)
Wisconsin
Overall/Conference Record: 26-8, 13-7
Coach: Greg Gard
Ranking: No. 3 in East Region
Best win: 103-88 vs. No. 9 Arizona
Worst loss: 86-75 vs. Penn State
About the Badgers: Wisconsin is led by a one-two guard punch of John Tonje and John Blackwell, who are averaging 19.5 and 15.4 points per game, respectively. They also have two solid post players in Nolan Winter and Steven Crowl.
Montana
Overall/Conference Record: 25-9, 15-3
Coach: Travis DeCuire
Ranking: No. 14 in East Region
Best win: 83-75 vs. Cal State Northridge
Worst loss: 79-76 at Portland State, OT
About the Bobcats: The Big Sky champions, who denied UNC a tournament bid by beating them in the conference title game, have balanced with four scorers averaging double digits. Guard Money Williams is the top threat at 13.3 points.
No. 6 BYU (24-9) vs. No. 11 VCU (28-6)
BYU
Overall/Conference Record: 24-9, 14-6
Coach: Kevin Young
Ranking: No. 6 in East Region
Best win: 88-85 at No. 10 Iowa State, 2OT
Worst loss: 84-64 at Providence
About the Cougars: Led by their first-year coach Young, BYU is highlighted by guards Richie Saunders (16.0 points per game) and Egor Demin (10.3). Center Keba Keita is also impactful, averaging 7.1 points and 7.9 rebounds.
VCU
Overall/Conference Record: 28-6, 15-3
Coach: Ryan Odom
Ranking: No. 11 in East Region
Best win: 76-68 vs. Colorado State
Worst loss: 69-66 vs. Seton Hall, OT
About the Rams: After missing the tournament last year, the Rams are back in the dance. They feature four scorers averaging double digits: guards Max Shulga (15.0), Joseph Bamisile (15.0), Phillip Russell (10.7) and Zeb Jackson (10.6).
South Region
No. 4 Texas A&M (22-10) vs. No. 13 Yale (22-7)
Texas A&M
Overall/Conference Record: 22-10, 11-7
Coach: Buzz Williams
Ranking: No. 4 in South Region
Best win: 83-72 vs. No. 1 Auburn
Worst loss: 64-61 at UCF
About the Aggies: Texas A&M makes its third straight tourney appearance and is led by guards Wade Taylor IV (15.7) and Zhuric Phelps (14.1). Plus, they have two forwards capable of heaters in Pharrel Payne (9.4) and Henry Coleman III (7.8).
Yale
Overall/Conference Record: 22-7, 13-1
Coach: James Jones
Ranking: No. 13 in South Region
Best win: 74-58 vs. Akron
Worst loss: 100-94 vs. Delaware
About the Bulldogs: Yale is making its eighth tourney appearance after losing in the second round last year. The Bulldogs are headlined by the Ivy League’s top scorer John Poulakidas, who averages 19.0 points and shoots 40.2% from 3.
No. 5 Michigan (25-9) vs. No. 12 UC San Diego (30-4)
Michigan
Overall/Conference Record: 25-9, 14-6
Coach: Dusty May
Ranking: No. 5 in South Region
Best win: 67-64 at No. 11 Wisconsin
Worst loss: 84-81 at Minnesota, OT
About the Wolverines: Under first-year boss May, Michigan is back in the dance following a two-year absence. A pair of potent forwards lead the way in Vladislav Goldin (16.9 points on 63.4% from the field) and Danny Wolf (9.9 rebounds).
UC San Diego
Overall/Conference Record: 30-4, 18-2
Coach: Eric Olen
Ranking: No. 12 in South Region
Best win: 75-73 at Utah State
Worst loss: 85-81 at UC Riverside
About the Tritons: Making their tourney debut in just the fifth year of the program, the Big West champions feature four scorers averaging double figures. Forward Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones (19.5 points, 5.5 rebounds) is the Tritons’ star.
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The Washington Wizards defeated the Denver Nuggets 126-123 on Saturday behind Jordan Poole’s game-winning 3-pointer with 1.8 seconds remaining.
Alex Sarr scored a career-high 34 points against three-time MVP Nikola Jokic. The rookie shot 12-for-28 from the field and 5-for-9 from 3-point range in Washington’s victory. Sarr scored 24 in the first half and drilled a clutch 3-pointer as the Wizards mounted their comeback.
Fellow rookie Kyshawn George was all over the place once again, blocking two shots, snatching three steals and scoring 19 points. George received a skip pass from Poole with 10 seconds left and drilled the go-ahead 3-ball before Jamal Murray tied the game with a mid-range bucket.
With 5.3 seconds remaining, Washington called timeout to draw up a play. That play wasn’t executed the way they expected, though, as upon receiving the inbounds pass, Poole launched a 35-foot 3-pointer. The Wizards guard drilled it, stunning the Denver crowd and propelling his squad to consecutive victories over playoff-caliber squads.
Washington is now 15-51 and tied with the Utah Jazz in the win column for the NBA’s worst record.
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