Jamal Murray has exploded for a game-high 50 points, including 14 in a second-quarter turnaround, to propel third-seeded Denver Nuggets to a 119-107 victory over sixth-seeded Utah Jazz.
The win forces a seventh and deciding game in their Western Conference first-round playoff series in the NBA bubble.
In his post-game interview, Murray was overcome with emotion, as he referred to his custom shoes sporting the faces of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, who were both killed by police earlier this year.
"I just want to win," he says. "In life, you find things that hold value - things to fight for - and we found something worth fighting for as an NBA, as a collective unit.
"I use these shoes as a symbol to me to keep fighting all around the world. Like I said, they give me a lot of power to keep fighting.
"Even though these people are gone, they give me life. They help me find strength to keep fighting in this world and that’s what I’m going to keep doing."
In scoring 50 for the second time in three games, Murray won a second consecutive duel with Jazz counterpart Donovan Mitchell, who poured in a team-high 44 points - his third time over 40 in the series.
Game seven is scheduled for Wednesday (NZ time), with the Nuggets going the distance for the third consecutive time in the last two seasons.
In the opening Western Conference match-up of the day, Kawhi Leonard had 33 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists, and Los Angeles Clippers eliminated Dallas Mavericks from the playoffs with a 111-97 victory in game six.
Ivica Zubac had 15 points and 11 rebounds, while Paul George contributed 15 points, nine boards and seven assists for the Clippers. Leonard added five steals.
The Clippers advanced to the second round of the Western Conference playoffs, where they await the winners of the Utah Jazz-Denver Nuggets series.
Luka Doncic had 38 points, nine assists and nine rebounds for the Mavericks. Dorian Finney-Smith added 16 points and Tim Hardaway Jnr chipped in 10.
In the first second-round game of the playoffs, Jayson Tatum and Marcus Smart scored 21 points apiece to lift Boston Celtics to a 112-94 victory over Toronto Raptors in the opener of their Eastern Conference semifinal series.
Kemba Walker had 18 points, Jaylen Brown 17, Daniel Theis 13 and Robert Williams III 10, as the Celtics won their fifth straight game to open the playoffs. Theis and Walker added game highs of 15 rebounds and 10 assists respectively.
Kyle Lowry had 17 points and Serge Ibaka added 15 for the Raptors, who saw their eight-game winning streak end.
Toronto shot 31-of-84 (36.9 percent) from the field and 10-of-40 (25.0 percent) from three-point range. Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet combined to go 8-of-32 for 24 points.
