It was night and day for the Nuggets! Overtaken in all areas of play during the first confrontation between the two teams on Sunday, Russell Westbrook's teammates displayed a decidedly more aggressive face for this Act II, faithful to their philosophy (of trying) of never losing two games in a row, and were rewarded with a convincing victory.
Memphis quickly shot itself in the foot when Jaren Jackson Jr conceded two fouls in less than five minutes on the floor. The Nuggets, who started with a 9-2 start, weren't asking for that much. More incisive in defense and more aggressive towards the circle, like an unrecognizable Michael Porter Jr compared to Sunday, the protégés of Nikola Jokic (still absent for personal reasons) went to +10 on a 2+1 of Peyton Watson (14-24).
3-pointers from Jay Huff and Santi Aldama only delayed the deadline. Christian Braun and Michael Porter Jr quickly restarted the machine with big dunks, while Jamal Murray and Peyton Watson regained a gap before the break thanks to their outside skill, all enhanced by a counter from a Russell Westbrook also found on Jake LaRavia (57-68).
The composure of Dario Saric to finish the job
Memphis hit rock bottom after returning from the locker room by conceding a 15-1 launched by the arrows of the Murray-Watson pair, fueled by the 2+1 of Michael Porter Jr, the dunk of DeAndre Jordan and concluded by Christian Brown to bring the score at 83-58! Supported by the Kennard-Pippen Jr-Aldama trio, Jaren Jackson Jr tried to initiate an improbable “comeback”.
There was notably a 10-2 between the end of the third quarter and the start of the fourth, marked by a technical foul from Russell Westbrook for looking too hard at Luke Kennard after a basket (82-92). JJJ raised the temperature by bringing his team back to (86-94). Enough to reverse the balance of power? Not really. Russell Westbrook indeed redeemed himself in the process by lining up a 3-pointer, a service for MPJ in transition then finding an impeccable Jamal Murray at 3-points twice (90-105).
Santi Aldama, however, maintained the suspense by also responding twice and then scoring a 3-point basket to put the pressure back on Denver as money time approached (99-107). As best they could, Scotty Pippen Jr, Desmond Bane and Jaren Jackson Jr tried everything to bring the gap back to -5 (110-115). After a missed 3-pointer from Jamal Murray, Denver's salvation finally came through a calm 3-pointer from Dario Saric on a serve from his leader to seal the fate of the match (110-118).
WHAT TO REMEMBER
The Porter Jr. symbol We could name a lot of players who got through it on Sunday and who redeemed themselves that night. But in its intensity and aggressiveness, Michael Porter Jr's match is perhaps the most beautiful symbol of this transfigured team. It is even more so since the winger, labeled as a shooter, did not make a single 3-pointer (0/4). On the other hand, he proved that he could bring much more than in this exercise, by being aggressive towards the circle and in the transition game to finish with a nice double-double at 24 points and 10 rebounds.
The 200th for Russell Westbrook! He also fell through in the last game and made up for it in style yesterday, in style as he signed his 200th career triple-double, with 12 points, 10 rebounds and 14 assists. He helped repel the enemy's attacks at the start of the fourth quarter before securing his “TD” on a final offensive rebound with less than two minutes remaining.
Zach Edey is missing. The rookie pivot is the last Grizzlies player to find himself on the floor. Badly falling on the foot of Dario Saric during the previous confrontation on Sunday, the Canadian was unable to hold his place, victim of a sprain. Estimated in weeks by Taylor Jenkins before the match, his absence weighed heavily, as he was in sight at the start of the season, and especially in the face of the problem of fouls which quickly compromised Jaren Jackson Jr's match. Also note the injury by Vince Williams Jr, who also twisted his ankle in similar conditions, landing badly on Russell Westbrook's foot after trying to grab an offensive rebound.
Big concern for Vlatko Cancar. Absent last season following a rupture of the cruciate ligaments in his left knee, Vlatko Cancar may not see the courts again for a while. The winger, who has been playing since the start of the season with protection on his leg, suddenly started limping low after a big dunk over Luke Kennard. Falling badly, he quickly complained about his left knee and went straight to the locker room, which did not bode well.
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How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Pts = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
