amal Murray is helping the Nuggets catch fire.

As we enter the last half of the NBA season, it seems like Jamal Murray has hit another gear. On Thursday night, the Denver Nuggets beat the Charlotte Hornets 129-115. Murray led the Nuggets’ scoring, going 12-of-18 from the field. He was also on fire from three-point range, shooting 7-of-10 from three. In his last two games, Murray has posted a whopping 89 points.

Prior to the start of the All-Star Break, the Nuggets were on an absolute tear, winning eight straight. In the first game back from the break, it appears they are continuing right where they left off. The Nuggets, who have now won nine consecutive games, are hitting their stride at the perfect time as the race for playoff seeding heats up.

On top of the Nuggets heating up, fans are also starting to see some vintage Murray. The kind of vintage Murray that makes him one of the league’s most dangerous playoff shooters.

“He got off to a great start in that first quarter, and he maintained that throughout the night,” said Nuggets head coach Michael Malone. “We’ve always said it: When Jamal is aggressive and playing with that kind of swagger, it usually leads to a big night for him.”

Nuggets focused on controlling their own playoff destiny

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With the Nuggets win and a Memphis Grizzlies loss on Thursday, the Nuggets slid into second place in the Western Conference. The Western Conference is arguably the most difficult conference, as 10 teams have a record over .500.

Malone is very aware that there is very little room for error in the last half of the season but says the Nuggets are not trying to plan out their playoff path. Instead, they’re focusing on winning and controlling what they can control.

“No matter who you play in the west, it’s going to be a dog fight,” said Malone. “There is no ‘let’s get this seed so we can play this team.’ Okay, careful what you wish for. So we will continue to go about our business. But we are not going to try and win the battle and end up losing the war. We gotta be smart about that as we approach these final games and make sure we have enough in the tank for a deep [playoff] run.”

The Nuggets will look to extend their win streak as the Los Angeles Lakers come into town on Saturday.