Jokic's triple-double lifts Nuggets over Suns 133-111

DENVER (AP) — Nikola Jokic had his second triple-double of the season despite a quiet shooting night, Jamal Murray scored 23 points, and the Denver Nuggets beat the Phoenix Suns 133-111 in their home opener on Saturday night.

Jokic finished with 15 assists, 14 rebounds and 14 points on just 5 of 8 shooting. His first field goal attempt came with 2:26 left in the second quarter. He notched the triple-double on a turnaround hook shot with 57 seconds in the period.

Jokic has 166 career triple-doubles during the regular season, third behind Russell Westbrook (203) and Oscar Robertson (181), and 18 more in the playoffs.

Devin Booker had 31 points and Grayson Allen scored 17 for the Suns, who were playing the second game of a tough back-to-back. They tipped off Saturday night 20 hours after losing by 27 to the Los Angeles Clippers and didn’t have center Mark Williams, who was out with a right knee injury.

Phoenix trailed by 20 early in the third quarter but went on a 13-2 run to cut the deficit to 83-74. The Nuggets scored the next 11 points and took a 100-83 lead into the fourth.

Murray, who had 25 points and 10 assists in the loss at Golden State, sparked Denver at the start of the final period with a 3-pointer that made it 108-86. He also beat the buzzer at the end of the first quarter with a 55-foot pullup jumper.

The Suns got within 110-99 midway through the fourth but the Nuggets answered with a 14-2 run to put it away.

Aaron Gordon followed his career-high 50-point game Thursday night with 17 points and was 1 of 6 from deep.

Suns: Visit the Utah Jazz on Monday night.

Nuggets: At the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night.

AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL

Denver Nuggets forward Cameron Johnson, left, looks to pass the ball as Phoenix Suns guard Grayson Allen, right, defends in the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Phoenix Suns center Nick Richards, center, goes up for a basket as Denver Nuggets forwards Aaron Gordon, left, and Christian Braun, right, defend in the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Denver Nuggets guard Bruce Brown, second from front right, fouls Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) who was driving to the basket in the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon, left, looks to pass the ball as Phoenix Suns guard Grayson Allen, right, defends in the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, left, pulls in a rebound as Phoenix Suns forward Oso Ighodaro, right, defends in the first half of an NBA basketball game Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — An ailing astronaut returned to Earth with three others on Thursday, ending their space station mission more than a month early in NASA’s first medical evacuation.

SpaceX guided the capsule to a middle-of-the-night splashdown in the Pacific near San Diego, less than 11 hours after the astronauts exited the International Space Station.

“It’s so good to be home,” said NASA astronaut Zena Cardman, the capsule commander.

It was an unexpected finish to a mission that began in August and left the orbiting lab with only one American and two Russians on board. NASA and SpaceX said they would try to move up the launch of a fresh crew of four; liftoff is currently targeted for mid-February.

Cardman and NASA’s Mike Fincke were joined on the return by Japan’s Kimiya Yui and Russia’s Oleg Platonov. Officials have refused to identify the astronaut who had the health problem or explain what happened, citing medical privacy.

While the astronaut was stable in orbit, NASA wanted them back on Earth as soon as possible to receive proper care and diagnostic testing. The entry and splashdown required no special changes or accommodations, officials said, and the recovery ship had its usual allotment of medical experts on board. It was not immediately known when the astronauts would fly from California to their home base in Houston. Platonov’s return to Moscow was also unclear.

NASA stressed repeatedly over the past week that this was not an emergency. The astronaut fell sick or was injured on Jan. 7, prompting NASA to call off the next day’s spacewalk by Cardman and Fincke, and ultimately resulting in the early return. It was the first time NASA cut short a spaceflight for medical reasons. The Russians had done so decades ago.

The space station has gotten by with three astronauts before, sometimes even with just two. NASA said it will be unable to perform a spacewalk, even for an emergency, until the arrival of the next crew, which has two Americans, one French and one Russian astronaut.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

This screengrab from video provided by NASA TV shows the SpaceX Dragon departing from the International Space Station shortly after undocking with four NASA Crew-11 members inside on Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (NASA via AP)

This photo provided by NASA shows clockwise from bottom left are, NASA astronaut Mike Fincke, Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, NASA astronaut Zena Cardman, and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui gathering for a crew portrait wearing their Dragon pressure suits during a suit verification check inside the International Space Station’s Kibo laboratory module, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (NASA via AP)

This screengrab from video provided by NASA shows recovery vessels approaching the NASA's SpaceX Crew-11 capsule to evacuate one of the crew members after they re-entered the earth in a middle-of-the-night splashdown near San Diego, Calif., Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (NASA via AP)

This screengrab from video provided by NASA shows the NASA's SpaceX Crew-11 members re entering the earth in a middle-of-the-night splashdown near San Diego, Calif., Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (NASA via AP)

This screengrab from video provided by NASA shows the NASA's SpaceX Crew-11 members re entering the earth in a middle-of-the-night splashdown near San Diego, Calif., Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (NASA via AP)