DENVER Nuggets leaned on a decisive second-half surge to pull away from Minnesota Timberwolves, 116-105, in Game 1 of their NBA Western Conference first-round playoffs on Saturday night (Sunday in the Philippines) in Denver, Colorado.
Jamal Murray delivered a game-high 30 points and was flawless from the foul line, sinking all 16 of his free throws as the Nuggets took a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.
Nikola Jokic, meanwhile, imposed his all-around brilliance with a triple-double of 25 points, 13 rebounds, and 11 assists, Aaron Gordon tallied 17, while Cameron Johnson and Christian Braun ended with 12 apiece.
Minnesota came out strong and built an early double-digit cushion, but Denver gradually found its rhythm. The turning point came in the third quarter when the home team unleashed a 17-2 blast that flipped the contest and gave them control.
The Timberwolves refused to fade, cutting the gap to just two points, 97-95, midway through the fourth. Jokic responded with a personal scoring run to stretch Denver’s lead for good.
Anthony Edwards paced Minnesota with 22 points while playing through a knee issue, Rudy Gobert had a double-double of 17 points and 10 rebounds, and Julius Randle and Jaden McDaniels contributed 16 apiece.
In Cleveland, Donovan Mitchell scored 32 points, Max Strus had a playoff career-high of 24 off the bench and the Cavaliers defeated Toronto Raptors 126-113 in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference first-round series.
James Harden had 22 points and 10 assists, Evan Mobley had 17 and seven rebounds, and Jarrett Allen also hit double-digits in scoring with 10 for fourth-seeded Cleveland.
RJ Barrett scored 24 points and Scottie Barnes had 21 for the Raptors, who were playing in their first playoff game since 2022. Jamal Shead started at the point and had 17 points, including five 3-pointers.
In other results, Los Angeles Lakers prevailed over Houston Rockets, 107-98, to open their series, while New York Knicks also drew first blood against Atlanta Hawks, 113-102./PN
