Stephen Curry scored 30 points in his return to Golden State’s starting lineup and the Warriors beat Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets 102-98 on Wednesday to tip the NBA playoff first-round series in their favor after five games. .
Curry converted a 3-point play with 1:33 left and scored again with 29 seconds left to put the Warriors into the Western Conference second round.
Jokic had 12 of his 30 points in the final 3:46 of the game and rounded out his performance with 19 rebounds and eight assists.
In the next phase, the Warriors will face the winner of the duel between the Grizzlies and the Timberwolves. Memphis, which eliminated Golden State in the playoffs last season, heads into Game 6 on Friday in Minneapolis with a 3-2 lead.
Jokic tied it 90-90 with an 18-footer with 2:26 remaining, but Gary Payton II responded with a layup for the Warriors moments later. Payton, who had already put his team ahead at the start of the final quarter with a lopsided 3-pointer from in front of the Denver bench, had 15 points.
DeMarcus Cousins had 19 points for the Nuggets off the bench against his former team, and Aaron Gordon had 15 points and nine rebounds.
The Argentine Facundo Campazzo dismissed his participation in the postseason with a rebound and an assist for Denver.
