Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray gave some insight Monday night into his game-winning, buzzer-beating shot in the Nuggets' 101-99 win over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Speaking to reporters after the game, Murray suggested that while he didn't see his shot go in, he knew that it did based on the reaction from the home crowd, saying: "I just lost my balance and fell. I think [Lakers All-Star forward Anthony Davis] AD was in my way or somebody was in my way, and I just heard everybody scream—and that's how I knew it went in."
With the game tied 99-99 in the waning seconds, Murray took the ball, stutter-stepped behind the three point line to freeze Davis, dribbled to the wing and nailed a fadeaway jumper with 0.1 seconds remaining to seal a 101-99 come-from-behind win:
NBA on TNT @NBAonTNTMURRAY CALLED GAME.<br><br>WOW 😳 <a href="">
Murray shot just 9-for-24 for the game and was 0-for-5 from three-point range, but he noted that his teammates urged him to continue being aggressive:
"I told my teammates when I was struggling, 'I'm going to look for y'all,' and every single one of them told me to keep shooting.
"They told me to stay aggressive and keep looking for it, keep hunting, and when I had the ball with two seconds left, I knew once I had made a couple the next one should go down, as well."
The Lakers dominated most of Game 2, leading by 15 at halftime and 10 through three quarters, and by as many as 20 during the second half.
However, Murray came to life in the fourth quarter, going 6-of-8 from the field and scoring 14 of his 20 points, which proved to be the difference.
Not to be overshadowed, two-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokić was a force for the Nuggets as usual, finishing with 27 points, 20 rebounds and 10 assists, as Denver took a 2-0 series lead.
The Lakers' stars also came to play, as LeBron James recorded 26 points, 12 assists and eight rebounds, while AD had a game-high 32 points to go along with 11 rebounds.
A Game 2 win would have been massive for the Lakers since they would have gone back to L.A. with the series knotted at 1-1 and momentum firmly on their side, but Murray and the Nuggets had other ideas.
Now, the Nuggets are 6-0 against the Lakers in the playoffs dating back to last season when Denver swept Los Angeles out of the Western Conference Finals.
The Lakers still have a fighting chance with James and Davis leading the way, but coming back from a 2-0 deficit against a battle-tested, defending NBA champion won't be easy.
