Nuggets, Suns advance to 2nd round of NBA playoffs

LOS ANGELES – Denver and Phoenix booked their places in the next round with series-clinching victories Tuesday (Wednesday, Manila time). 

The Nuggets fashioned out a 112-109 home victory against the Minnesota Timberwolves to complete a 4-1 series win, while the Suns wrapped up their series with the Los Angeles Clippers by the same margin with a 136-130 triumph in Arizona.

The Nuggets, who will face Phoenix in the conference semifinals, were made to work hard for their win by a Timberwolves team who jumped out to an early 15-point lead in the first quarter before gradually being reeled in.

Jamal Murray led the Nuggets scorers with 35 points while reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic bagged his second triple-double of the series with 28 points, 17 rebounds and 12 assists.

Minnesota's Anthony Edwards missed a 3-point attempt on the buzzer that would have forced overtime as the Timberwolves' season came to an end.

Edwards finished with 29 points while Karl-Anthony Towns added 26.  

In Phoenix, Devin Booker erupted for 47 points while Kevin Durant poured in 31 points to spark the Suns to victory over the short-handed Clippers.

The Clippers, missing the injured Paul George and Kawhi Leonard, fought bravely to lead by 10 early in the second half.

But when Booker took over with 25 of 50 Phoenix points in a lopsided third quarter, the Clippers were left chasing the game. 

Los Angeles somehow managed to close to within two points with just under two minutes remaining before Durant settled Phoenix with a layup and two free throws to make the game safe.

"Those guys don't stop fighting," Booker said of the Clippers afterwards. 

"That's been the story of the whole series. Even though they were down men, we knew they were going to bring it."