PHOENIX – The first sign that things were different came right at the top: The start was good.
Slow starts have been more than a thorn in the Nuggets’ side this season, they’ve become a full-fledged epidemic. Even more maddening for the Nuggets is that they knew they were 4-1 when they led after the first quarter this season.
Good starts have equaled good finishes, and that was the case again here Sunday afternoon.
The Nuggets started fast and held on for a 120-114 win against Phoenix at Talking Stick Resort Arena. The Suns have been a cure-all for the Nuggets, who have put 240 points on the Suns in two victories this season.
“I’m happy for our guys,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said. “We’ve had a lot of tough losses. And to come back after another tough loss the other night against OKC and win on the road, I give all the credit to our players. They came out today and they were ready to play from jump street.”
The Nuggets played arguably their best first half of the season. They sprinted out to an 11-0 lead and bested that with a 14-0 run to start the second quarter and held a comfortable lead for most of the game.
Their defense was to thank.
When the shots were falling for the Nuggets, they worked hard to ensure they weren’t falling for the Suns. That meant chasing Suns sharpshooter Devin Booker all over the court. It meant fighting through screens, and keeping the basketball out of the paint.
Booker labored to score the entire first half. The Nuggets did a nice of sticking to him, making certain he didn’t get rolling. But he turned it up in the second half and there were anxious moments for the Nuggets. Booker scored 12 points in the third period as he and Eric Bledsoe led a furious charge that chopped a 20-point halftime lead down to four. , however, kept the Nuggets in front, hitting for 14 of his 21 points in the third and the Nuggets took a seven-point lead into the fourth.
“That’s 13, 14 years of NBA experience that’s been in this situation thousands of times,” Malone said. “I said to my coaches at halftime, I know it beats the alternative but I hate being up 20 at halftime because you know the other team is going to come out and play just reckless, nothing to lose.”
Phoenix did. But the Nuggets kept the Suns at bay in the final quarter to snap a two-game losing streak. led the Nuggets with 25 points and eight rebounds. finished with 19 points, four rebounds and six assists.
“That’s the NBA,” Nuggets forward said. “Guys are going to play hard until the end of the game, especially at home. Today was a tale of who was going to give in first. Are we going to let them back in the game and give up another game? We decided to dig our heels in and say ‘no, not today.’ “
