Murray Makes it a Series: Nuggets vs. Jazz Game Five (August 25, 2020)
The Denver Nuggets took on the Utah Jazz in game five of their first round matchup. The Jazz have been great and were looking to take the series, as Denver was trying to stay alive.
Early on the Jazz were getting called for a lot of fouls. Denver, who had been struggling to get into the paint all series, were doing so well early on. Mike Conley (17 pts, 4 reb, 5 ast) got two fouls called on him in the first three minutes, so he was going to have to be cautious not to pick up a third.
Donovan Mitchell (30 pts, 2 reb, 5 ast) was off to yet another hot start, as he and his teammates were draining threes. He’s looked like an All-NBA caliber player this series, and the Nuggets have had no answer for it. In fact, the Jazz as a team had been unconscious from three in the first three games, and it looked like things were going to stay the same in game five.
Nikola Jokic (31 pts, 6 reb, 4 ast) was putting the team on his back in the first, scoring a large majority of the team’s points. He was shooting a perfect 7-7 from the field and Utah couldn’t do anything to stop him. His ability to stretch the floor drew Rudy Gobert (11 pts, 12 reb) out of the paint and opened up the floor so well for Utah’s offense. He wasn’t missing from deep either and had made his first four threes.
Speaking of threes, neither team was missing. Both were shooting 50% or better through the first quarter, making for a very competitive game. Jokic finished off the first by nailing an absurd running floater from deep as the clock hit zero, rounding out a 21 point quarter for him to start the game.
While the playstyle of both teams was similar in the sense that they were shooting a lot of threes, the scoring breakdown was very different. Jokic was doing most of the scoring for the Nuggets, while the jazz were getting production from almost everyone. With six minutes still left in the second, no one had scored in the double digits.
At least that was the case until Jordan Clarkson (17 pts, 3 reb) began his hot streak. He was single-handedly growing Utah’s lead in the second quarter. The Jazz traded for him earlier this season to come off the bench and be a scoring spark, and he was doing exactly that.
The energy may not have seemed high on offense for Denver, but a part of that was because they knew their game plan and stuck to it - get the ball to Jokic. He had the hot hand early and they were taking every opportunity to take advantage of that. Jokic was getting the ball in one-on-one spots, pulling up from three, and obviously in the post. He was going to be the path to victory in this game for the Nuggets.
Unfortunately, basketball is very much a team game. Energy from Jokic alone was not going to cut it. Utah was playing as a team well, and took a 63-54 lead into halftime.
Utah came out of the locker room with much more energy than the Nuggets. It almost seemed like the roles were flipped. As if the Jazz were the ones on the brink of elimination, and the Nuggets were up 3-1 in the series. Michael Malone was going to have to light a spark under his team somehow or they were going to be heading home.
Throughout the third Utah continued to stay well ahead of the Nuggets. Utah was playing solid defense and forcing Denver into taking the shots that they wanted them to take. Quin Snyder was more than happy to allow Jokic to pull up from three, because he knew it was much more dangerous to let him get in the post.
Jamal Murray (42 pts, 8 reb, 8 ast) started to show signs of life, though, as he attempted to help Denver climb back into the game. The Jazz kept a solid lead for the most part, but Murray was trying his best to chip away at it. His ability to drive, as well as shoot from deep, provided the Nuggets with lots of options on offense. His ability to score the ball was the only reason the Nuggets were able to make a run late in the third.
The Nuggets, who had been getting killed for most of the game, had managed to cut Utah’s lead down to four going into the fourth. Murray was getting anything he wanted on offense.
Malone had his team playing some really solid defense ever since getting killed in the first quarter and a half. The Jazz were stifled on the offensive end and to make matters worse, Clarkson had gone cold from the field. The Nuggets had fought all the way back into the game as the fourth was starting.
Murray did not want to go home. Mitchell did not want to play a game six. This was going to be another battle, with neither giving an inch to the other.
Mitchell threw down an emphatic dunk midway through the third as he and the Jazz were sticking right with Denver. Murray and Mitchell had been the clear best players throughout the series, and nothing was changing in game five. It was all about who wanted it more, and who’s team decided to show up that night.
Conley was having another solid night as he tried to help Mitchell put away the Nuggets in the fourth. He had a couple great drives in the middle of the quarter where he was able to wiggle his way to the basket. On the second drive he managed to draw a foul for the and-one and was providing the Jazz with some amazing energy.
Utah was playing some great defense on Denver, but Murray was still finding ways to score. There were some questions about if the Nuggets wanted to win enough to do it, and he came out of the half showing how bad he wanted it. Murray was willing to do anything to get his team the win.
Due to Murray’s relentless attack on offense, the Nuggets found themselves with a seven point lead with two minutes left in the game. Mitchell was guarding him and he was still getting buckets. Add the fact that Utah went on a cold stretch offensively and it meant Denver had all the momentum. Murray wasn’t missing.
With under a minute left, Denver’s lead was still eight, but Mitchell was not ready to give up. He stripped Michael Porter Jr. (15 pts, 5 reb) in transition and passed it to Gobert for an easy dunk. That cut the deficit to six with 43 seconds left. Utah wasn’t done yet.
The following Nuggets possession saw Murray with the ball in his hand once again. He drove to the rim and the entire defense collapsed on him. This meant Jokic was wide open in the corner and he nailed the three. The Nuggets were up by nine with only 22 seconds left.
Mitchell drained a ridiculous three off the glass, but it was too little too late. Despite his fight, the onslaught of Murray was just too much to deal with. He willed the Nuggets to a 117-107 victory in this one, keeping them alive in the series.
Make sure to catch game six of this highly competitive series on Thursday, August 27 at 4:00 PM EST.
