[ad_1]
Nikola Jokic # 15 of the Denver Nuggets passes the ball during the first quarter against the Utah Jazz in Game Seven of the Western Conference First Round during the 2020 NBA Playoffs at AdventHealth Arena at ESPN Wide World Of Sports Complex on 1 September 2020 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. Mike Ehrmann / Getty Images / AFP
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Florida – Nikola Jokic made the tiebreaker basket with 27 seconds left and the Denver Nuggets advanced to the second round of the playoffs by the narrowest margin, beating the Utah Jazz 80-78 in Game 7 on Tuesday late at night when Mike Conley Three-headed turned the doorbell.
The Nuggets became the twelfth team in NBA history to overcome a 3-1 deficit to win a series, but only after they blew a 19-point lead in this game.
After Jokic’s basket, the Jazz passed the ball to Donovan Mitchell after a timeout. The Nuggets stole it and ran for a fast break, but Torrey Craig missed the layup. Utah bounced back and pushed the ball across the floor toward Conley, whose shot looked good until he fell.
Jokic had 30 points and 14 rebounds and Jamal Murray had 17 points. No. 3 seed Denver advanced to meet the Los Angeles Clippers in the Western Conference semifinals.
Donovan Mitchell scored 22 points and Rudy Gobert finished with 19 points and 18 rebounds after a great second half for the Jazz.
A series that featured historic offensive fireworks between Murray and Mitchell turned into a dated Game 7 defensive fight. Murray shot just 7 of 21, a far cry from his performances in the last three games.
So the Nuggets turned more to Jokic, their All-Star center who threw a short hook shot down the line after the Jazz tied at 78.
Murray and Mitchell became the first player pair to have two 50-point games in the same series, but the men in the middle were the biggest factors in this one.
After a quiet first half in which Mitchell was all the Jazz had, Gobert began to dominate the paint, keeping possessions alive on offense and stopping Denver’s units on defense.
But the Nuggets prevailed in their third Game 7 in the past two years, having defeated San Antonio in the first round last year before being knocked out by Portland. They played three more life and death games in the bubble to extend their stay.
Denver controlled the first half and had a 19-point lead in the third quarter. Mitchell then scored nine straight points before Conley hit a triple that brought him down to 55-48. The Jazz lowered it to 65-60 after Gobert converted a three-point play for the final points of the period.
Utah then got the first eight of the quarter, Gobert’s last six, to open a 68-65 lead.
The Jazz won three games in a row after Denver took the opener in overtime, and they were ready to end the series when they led by 15 points in the second half of Game 5.
But Murray, who had scored 50 points in Game 4, bounced back from the Nuggets and finished with 42, then came back with 50 again in Game 6, a total of 142 in three games that had been beaten in the playoffs only by Jerry. West and Michael. Jordan.
TIP-INS
Nuggets: Denver improved to 3-3 in Game 7.… Michael Porter Jr. had 10 points and nine rebounds.
Jazz: Mitchell scored 14 straight points for Utah at halftime. … Utah scored just 15 points in the second quarter after being limited to 20 in Game 6.
Read next
EDITOR’S SELECTION
MOST READ
Subscribe to INQUIRER PLUS to get access to The Philippine Daily Inquirer and more than 70 other titles, share up to 5 gadgets, listen to the news, download from 4am and share articles on social media. Call 896 6000.
For comments, complaints or inquiries, please contact us.
[ad_2]
