Halftime Report
Down four at the end of the first quarter, the Suns now have the lead. They have a bit of a cushion as they currently lead the Nuggets 65-50.
The Suns came into the contest with some extra motivation after the defeat they were dealt the last time these two teams faced off. We’ll see if they’re able to flip the script or if it’ll just be more of the same.
Who’s Playing
Phoenix Suns @ Denver Nuggets
Current Records: Phoenix 35-26, Denver 42-19
How To Watch
- When: Tuesday, March 5, 2024 at 10 p.m. ET
- Where: Ball Arena — Denver, Colorado
- TV: TNT
- Follow: CBS Sports App
- Online Streaming: Catch select NBA matches on Fubo (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket Cost: $34.99
What to Know
The Suns have enjoyed a four-game homestand but will soon have to dust off their road jerseys. They will square off against the Denver Nuggets at 10:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday at Ball Arena. The Suns might want some stickum for this contest since the team gave up 21 turnovers on Sunday.
Last Sunday, Phoenix came up short against the Thunder and fell 118-110. The Suns got off to an early lead (up 13 with 5:50 left in the first quarter), but sadly they weren’t able to maintain that momentum.
The Suns’ loss shouldn’t obscure the performances of Bradley Beal, who scored 31 points along with six assists, and Jusuf Nurkic who dropped a double-double on 14 points and 31 rebounds. Beal didn’t help the Suns’ cause all that much against the Rockets on Saturday but the same can’t be said for this match.
Meanwhile, the Nuggets had already won five in a row (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 15.6 points), and they went ahead and made it six on Saturday. They walked away with a 124-114 victory over Los Angeles.
The Nuggets’ success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Nikola Jokic led the charge by dropping a double-double on 35 points and ten rebounds. Jokic didn’t help the Nuggets’ cause all that much against the Heat on Thursday but the same can’t be said for this contest. Another player making a difference was Michael Porter Jr., who shot 5-for-5 from deep and dropped a double-double on 25 points and ten rebounds.
Phoenix’s defeat dropped their record down to 35-26. As for Denver, they are on a roll lately: they’ve won nine of their last 12 matches, which provided a nice bump to their 42-19 record this season.
Tuesday’s match is shaping up to be a masterclass in shooting: The Suns just can’t miss this season, having made 49.5% of their shots per game (they’re ranked fourth in field goal percentage overall). However, it’s not like the Nuggets (currently ranked fourth in field goal percentage) struggle in that department as they’ve made 49.4% of their shots this season. Given these competing strengths, it’ll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
The Suns must know they’re fighting an uphill battle given the 9.5-point spread they’re up against. This contest might not be the best time to bet them against the spread since they’ve let bettors down the last three times they’ve played.
Odds
Denver is a big 9.5-point favorite against Phoenix, according to the latest NBA odds.
The line has drifted a bit towards the Nuggets, as the game opened with the Nuggets as a 7.5-point favorite.
The over/under is 224 points.
See NBA picks for every single game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get picks now.
Series History
Denver has won 6 out of their last 10 games against Phoenix.
- Dec 01, 2023 – Denver 119 vs. Phoenix 111
- May 11, 2023 – Denver 125 vs. Phoenix 100
- May 09, 2023 – Denver 118 vs. Phoenix 102
- May 07, 2023 – Phoenix 129 vs. Denver 124
- May 05, 2023 – Phoenix 121 vs. Denver 114
- May 01, 2023 – Denver 97 vs. Phoenix 87
- Apr 29, 2023 – Denver 125 vs. Phoenix 107
- Apr 06, 2023 – Phoenix 119 vs. Denver 115
- Mar 31, 2023 – Phoenix 100 vs. Denver 93
- Jan 11, 2023 – Denver 126 vs. Phoenix 97
