DENVER Nuggets completed its fightback from a deficit with a 104-89 victory over Los Angeles Clippers in their do-or-die Western Conference semifinals on Tuesday night (Wednesday in Manila).
Jamal Murray spearheaded the Nuggets with 40 points, including six triples, Nikola Jokić added triple-double 16 points, 22 rebounds and 13 assists while Gary Harris and Jerian Grant contributed 14 marks each.
It was a historic feat for the Nuggets as they became the first team to overcome a 1-3 series deficit twice in a single playoffs. This is also their fourth Western Conference finals appearance with the last being in since 2009.
Down by as much as 12 points in the opening half, the Nuggets leaned on the hot shooting of Murray and Jokić in the third quarter to establish an 82-74 edge, which later reached its largest gap at 20.
Montrezl Harrel finished with 20 points while Kawhi Leonard and Paul George struggled with 14 and 10 markers, respectively, for the Clippers, which are now 0-8 on games where they can clinch a Western Conference finals berth.
Meanwhile, Bam Adebayo came up with a huge defensive stop down the stretch as the Miami Heat cruised to a 117-114 overtime win against Boston Celtics in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference finals.
With Miami holding to a 116-114 edge after a three-point play by Jimmy Butler, Adebayo blocked the game-tying attempt of Celtics’ Jason Tatum before he drained a split free throw to seal the win for the Heat.
Goran Dragić top-scored with 29 points while Jae Crowder and Butler contributed 22 and 20 markers, respectively, for the Heat. Tatum tallied double-double 30 points and 14 rebounds for the Celtics.
BOX SCORES:
DENVER 104 – Murray 40, Jokić 16, Grant 14, Harris 14, Craig 6, Millsap 6, Morris 5, Porter Jr 2, Plumlee 1, Daniels 0, Dozier 0, Bates-Diop 0.
LOS ANGELES 89 – Harrell 20, Leonard 14, Beverley 11, Green 11, George 10, Morris 7, Williams 7, Zubac 6, Shamet 3, Jackson 0, Mann 0, McGruder 0.
Quarterscores:
Q1, 24-all; Q2, 54-56; Q3, 82-74; Q4, 104-89.
The NBA holds all matches of its 2019-2020 playoffs at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex inside Walt Disney World in Bay Lake, Florida, United States./PN
