LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — It only took a few plays for Denver coach Michael Malone to like what he was seeing Saturday night. The Nuggets were physical on both ends, getting whatever they wanted offensively and setting a tone defensively.
"We were a noticeably different team," Malone said.
It led to a noticeably different result, too.
Blown out in Game 1, the Nuggets led wire-to-wire in Game 2 of their Western Conference semifinal series with the Los Angeles Clippers. Jamal Murray scored 27 points, Nikola Jokic had 26 points and 18 rebounds and the Nuggets prevailed 110-101 to knot the series at a game apiece.