CNN
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The Phoenix Suns picked up an impressive – and unexpected – 117-107 overtime road win over the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday behind a 35-point performance from 2014 NBA MVP Kevin Durant.
After a three-game skid in the middle of February, the Nuggets had recently recaptured their form and entered the game against the Suns on a six-game winning streak.
Led by 25 points, 16 rebounds and five assists from MVP candidate Nikola Jokić, the Nuggets looked on course to make it a seventh straight victory until Durant hit a step-back three-pointer with just 27 seconds remaining to tie the game.
Durant had been struggling with his shooting late in the game, going 1-for-8 in the fourth quarter before his game-tying bucket, but stepped up at the crucial moment.
“I knew coming across half-court: ‘This is do-or-die right here, I’ve got make this shot or it might be game,’” Durant said, per the NBA. “My fundamentals were right on that one.
“It felt good leaving my hands. … I just love hearing the crowd go silent. That’s always a good feeling on the road.”
After scoring a miserly 12 points in the fourth quarter to allow the Nuggets to complete their comeback from 22 points down in the third, the Suns put up 15 in overtime – five of which came from Bradley Beal – and put the clamps on Denver, limiting the home team to five points in the extra period.
In the absence of star guard Devin Booker, who missed his second straight game with an ankle injury, the Suns were helped by 28 points from Grayson Allen, including eight triples.
“You look at the totality of the season, obviously, the end result is always important, playing in the playoffs, trying to win a championship, those are important,” Durant added.
“But you celebrate little moments.”
Jokić, who made an absurd spinning step-back three-pointer to beat the buzzer at the end of the first quarter, had the chance to win the game at the death but his last-gasp floater was off the mark.
Jamal Murray added 28 points, seven rebounds and nine assists for the defending champion Nuggets, who now sit third in the Western Conference, while Michael Porter Jr. added 20 points and seven rebounds.
“This is one of those where tomorrow we all feel better,” Murray added. “Tomorrow, we have better clarity and a lot more positive energy, but today, it’s tough.
“It wasn’t just one person who didn’t shoot well, it was damn near everybody.”
Victory for the Suns snaps a two-game skid, with the team currently sixth in the West and still fighting to avoid the play-in.