Nuggets outlast Thunder in Game 3 overtime thriller in NBA playoffs

Jamal Murray scored 27 points, and the big Denver Nuggets dominated successful overtime to bushed the Oklahoma City Thunder 113-104 successful Game 3 of their Western Conference second-round playoff series.

Nikola Jokic missed each 10 of his 3-point attempts successful Friday’s matchup and finished 8-for-25 from the tract but ended the nighttime with 20 points and 16 rebounds for the Nuggets, who pb the best-of-seven bid 2-1.

Game 4 is connected Sunday day successful Denver.

Aaron Gordon scored 22 points, including a tying bucket successful the last infinitesimal of regulation, and Michael Porter Jr went 5-for-6 from heavy and finished with 21 points for the Nuggets, who finished 39-for-85 from the tract (45.9 percent).

“We’ve been successful this concern before, we stayed poised,” Porter said astir Denver’s quality to triumph adjacent games. “[Aaron Gordon] deed that large 3 to nonstop it to overtime, similar he’s done each playoffs. Huge win.”

Jalen Williams scored 32 points for Oklahoma City, who were 1-for-7 from the tract successful overtime with 2 turnovers. Chet Holmgren had 18 points and 16 rebounds, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 18 points and 13 rebounds, and Isaiah Hartenstein had 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Thunder, who were 40-for-104 (38.5 percent) from the field.

“One happening that it takes to beryllium a large squad is you get taken to the bounds successful the playoffs, and you’ve got to emergence to the challenges that you’re confronted with,” Thunder caput manager Mark Daigneault said. “This team’s made a wont of doing that repeatedly. I person afloat assurance we’ll proceed to bash that, but we person to clasp what this is.”

Jokic opened overtime with a layup, and Porter drained a 3-pointer to marque it 107-102. Williams missed a floater and had a turnover, which led to Murray’s layup with 3:02 left.

Holmgren’s dunk with 1:56 near was Oklahoma City’s lone handbasket successful overtime, and the Nuggets closed it out.

“I think, precocious successful the games, you tin trust connected what you’ve seen and felt and done,” Nuggets caput manager David Adelman said astir the team’s playoff experience. “You tin consciousness a crippled that possibly you played a mates of years ago.”

Gilgeous-Alexander went 7-for-22 from the tract but enactment the Thunder up 93-92 with his archetypal 3-pointer of the nighttime with 7:33 near successful the fourth.

Oklahoma City led 95-93 aft Murray divided a brace of escaped throws with 5:58 left, and some teams went acold from the field. Gilgeous-Alexander missed 3 consecutive shots, and Denver tied it connected Gordon’s 2 escaped throws with 4:26 remaining.

Williams deed a layup, and Murray tied it astatine 97 with 2 escaped throws and enactment Denver up with a 17-footer with 2:17 left.

Luguentz Dort gave Oklahoma City backmost successful beforehand with a 3-pointer – his lone points of the nighttime – Murray was called for a question with 1:31 remaining, and Williams made a brace of escaped throws to marque it 102-99.

Gordon’s 3-pointer tied it with 27.5 seconds left, Gilgeous-Alexander missed a floater, and Jokic’s 20-footer astatine the buzzer was off, sending it to overtime.

Jamal Murray (#27) led the Denver Nuggets with 27 points successful Game 3 against the Thunder [Garrett Ellwood/Getty Images via AFP]

Banged-up Cavs stroke retired Pacers successful Game 3

In an earlier playoff matchup connected Friday, Donovan Mitchell scored 43 points to assistance the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 126-104 triumph implicit the Indiana Pacers successful Game 3 of their Eastern Conference semifinal bid successful Indianapolis.

The top-seeded Cavaliers outscored Indiana by a 34-13 borderline successful the 2nd 4th en way to cutting their shortage to 2-1 successful the best-of-seven series. Game 4 is connected Sunday successful Indianapolis.

Mitchell, who added 9 rebounds, made 14 of 29 shots from the level and 10 of 14 from the escaped propulsion line. The six-time All-Star drained 5 3-pointers connected 13 attempts aft entering the contention conscionable 2-for-18 from beyond the arc.

Cleveland’s Max Strus collected 20 points and 7 rebounds, Jarrett Allen had 19 and 12, and reigning Defensive Player of the Year Evan Mobley added 18 and 13, respectively, successful his instrumentality from a one-game lack caused by a sprained near ankle.

Darius Garland finished with conscionable 10 points portion being plagued by foul trouble. He was playing his archetypal crippled since April 23, having recovered from a toed injury.

“[We were] down 2-0,” Cavaliers manager Kenny Atkinson said. “It’s benignant of present oregon never. You’re banged up and you’re hurting … They had to trial it today. They showed a batch of fortitude. We person 1 time of betterment here, truthful it’s a speedy turnaround, and they tin crook it astir and beryllium acceptable to go.”

Cleveland held a decisive 56-37 borderline successful rebounds, including an 18-4 vantage connected the violative end.

Indiana’s Bennedict Mathurin scored 23 points disconnected the bench, and Pascal Siakam added 18.

Star Tyrese Haliburton was constricted to conscionable 4 points connected 2-of-8 shooting for the fourth-seeded Pacers.

Cleveland volition effort to level the bid erstwhile the Pacers big Game 4 connected Sunday.

Donovan Mitchell (#45) of the Cleveland Cavaliers drives to the handbasket during Game 3 against the Indiana Pacers connected May 9, 2025, astatine Gainbridge Fieldhouse successful Indianapolis, US [Ron Hoskins/Getty Images via AFP]