BBNBA: Jamal Murray's 32 points propel Nuggets past TyTy Washington, Rockets

Nikola Jokic recorded his 100th career triple-double on Tuesday night, but Jamal Murray was the star for the Denver Nuggets.

Murray played his best game since early February in the Nuggets’ 133-112 blowout win over the Houston Rockets. The former Kentucky Wildcat popped off for 32 points, four rebounds, and six assists on 12-18 shooting from the field overall, including a 5-10 clip from long range, in just 31 minutes of action. Jokic added 14 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists to the cause, his league-leading 24th triple-double of the season.

23 of Murray’s 32 points came in the first half, his most of the season. Alongside Jokic, those two have formed arguably the deadliest offensive approach in the entire NBA. Murray has been battling through injuries as of late but brushed that off against the Rockets in a game that was decided after the first two quarters. Denver continues to hold down the Western Conference’s top seed with a 44-19 record, 5.5 games ahead of the second-place Memphis Grizzlies.

For the Rockets, rookie point guard TyTy Washington played at least 18 minutes for the sixth straight game as Houston tanks the rest of its season away. The one-time ‘Cat went for 12 points and five assists on 5-10 shooting, his third outing in a row with double-digit scoring figures. Washington saw the floor for 28 minutes off the bench after starting the previous two outings.

Anthony Davis drops 28 and 19 in loss to Grizz

With LeBron James expected to miss multiple weeks with a foot injury, the Los Angeles Lakers are going to have to lean even more on Anthony Davis. While Davis certainly played well enough to lock up a win, his 28 points, 19 rebounds, and five blocks still weren’t enough to beat the Memphis Grizzlies. The Lakers fell 121-109 as Memphis All-Star Ja Morant exploded for 28 of his 39 points in the third quarter alone — the highest-scoring period ever by a Grizzlies player. Morant also chipped in 10 rebounds and 10 assists to finish with a triple-double.

The Lakers turned the ball over a season-high 26 times in the loss — five of them coming from Davis — which led to 41 Memphis points. Davis was also on the receiving end of a SportsCenter Top 10 highlight after Jaren Jackson Jr. powered home a putback dunk right on Davis’ dome. Also for the Lakers, Jarred Vanderbilt, who has been a revelation for the franchise since arriving at the trade deadline, contributed four points (1-6 shooting) and eight rebounds in 28 minutes. Wenyen Gabriel added six points (3-3 shooting) and eight rebounds in just 12 minutes.

Other BBNBA notes

• Keldon Johnson dropped 25 points, four rebounds, and three assists in a surprise 102-94 win for the San Antonio Spurs over the Utah Jazz. The victory ended a 16-game losing streak for the Spurs.
• Both De’Aaron Fox (wrist) and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (health and safety protocols) were sidelined for what would have been an excellent BBNBA matchup between the Sacramento Kings and Oklahoma City Thunder. Malik Monk and Trey Lyles still saw the floor for the Kings, though. Monk added seven points, three rebounds, and two assists while Lyles chipped in nine points and five rebounds in a 123-117 win for Sacramento.
• Close your eyes, BBN. Shaedon Sharpe had another highlight-worthy dunk, this time a thunderous tomahawk slam against the Golden State Warriors, which you can see here. Sharpe registered 13 points and four rebounds on 6-11 shooting for the Portland Trail Blazers in a 123-105 loss.

2/28/23 Statistics

Player	Score	PTS	FG (3PT)	REB	AST	STL	BLK	TO	P/M	MIN
Jamal Murray (DEN)	133-112 W @ HOU	32	12-18 (5-10)	4	6	1	0	2	20	31
Anthony Davis (LAL)	109-121 L @ MEM	28	9-19 (0-1)	19	0	0	5	5	-9	35
Keldon Johnson (SAS)	102-94 W @ UTA	25	12-19 (0-4)	4	3	0	0	1	-3	35
Shaedon Sharpe (POR)	105-123 L @ GSW	13	6-11 (1-4)	4	1	1	1	0	-9	30
TyTy Washington Jr. (HOU)	112-133 L vs. DEN	12	5-10 (2-5)	1	5	0	1	1	-4	28
Trey Lyles (SAC)	123-117 W @ OKC	9	3-7 (1-4)	5	0	0	1	2	-7	13
Malik Monk (SAC)	123-117 W @ OKC	7	2-4 (1-3)	3	2	0	0	3	-12	15
Wenyen Gabriel (LAL)	109-121 L @ MEM	6	3-3 (0-0)	8	0	1	1	0	-3	12
Jarred Vanderbilt (LAL)	109-121 L @ MEM	4	1-6 (0-1)	8	1	1	1	3	-7	28
Kevin Knox (POR)	105-123 L @ GSW	0	0-1 (0-1)	0	0	0	0	0	-4	3
De’Aaron Fox (SAC)	123-117 W @ OKC	DNP-Wrist	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (OKC)	117-123 L vs. SAC	DNP-H/S Protocols	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Olivier Sarr (OKC)	117-123 L vs. SAC	DNP-G League	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Brandon Boston Jr. (LAC)	101-108 L vs. MIN	DNP-G League	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Isaiah Jackson (IND)	124-122 W @ DAL	DNP-CD	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Karl-Anthony Towns (MIN)	108-101 W @ LAC	DNP-Calf	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

Tonight in the NBA

7:00: Suns (Booker) @ Hornets
7:00: Bulls @ Pistons (Diallo)
7:30 (ESPN): Cavaliers @ Celtics
7:30: 76ers (Maxey) @ Heat (Adebayo, Herro)
7:30: Nets @ Knicks (Quickley, Randle)
8:00: Grizzlies @ Rockets (TyTy Washington)
8:00: Magic @ Bucks
8:00: Lakers (Davis, Gabriel, Vanderbilt) @ Thunder (Gilgeous-Alexander, Sarr)
10:00 (ESPN): Pelicans @ Trail Blazers (Knox, Sharpe)