Malone hopes Nuggets 'show some real fight' to avoid sweep

With the Denver Nuggets trailing 3-0 to the Phoenix Suns, head coach Michael Malone hopes his team has what it takes to force a Game 5.

"I know for myself, I can't speak for anyone else, the last thing I want to see is the Phoenix Suns pushing a broom across our court after Game 4," Malone said following Denver's 116-102 loss to Phoenix in Game 3, according to ESPN's Nick Friedell.

"But the one thing I don't want is for us to go out just quietly into that good night," the bench boss added. "I hope we show some real fight and resolve and force that series to go back to Phoenix for a Game 5."

The Nuggets have shown resiliency with their backs against the wall before. Just last season, Denver became the first team to overcome a pair of 3-1 series deficits in the same playoff run against the Utah Jazz and Los Angeles Clippers, reaching the Western Conference Finals.

After watching his club make history last year, Malone knows the Nuggets will need to take a similar approach if they want to extend their playoff run another day.

"As far as the 3-0 deficit, yes, history is not on our side. But you know what? We have rewritten history the last couple of years," Malone said. "When we were down 3-1 twice last year, it was never about trying to win three more games. It was about winning the next game, winning the first quarter, winning the second quarter, and that's got to be our mindset."

No NBA team has ever advanced in a series after falling into a 3-0 hole (0-142 all-time).