ANTHONY Davis swished a game-winning triple at the buzzer as the Los Angeles Lakers averted disaster with a 105-103 escape over Denver Nuggets in Game 2 of their Western Conference finals on Sunday night (Monday in the Philippines).
After seeing their once double-digit edge turn into a 102-103 deficit, Davis created a separation from Mason Plumlee to drain the triple over the defense of Nuggets center Nikola Jokić.
Davis finished the match with 31 points – with 22 coming in the second half – to go along with nine rebounds, two assists and two blocks as the Lakers surged to a 2-0 edge in the best-of-seven series.
LeBron James was the firestarter for the Lakers with 20 points in the opening half to finish with 26 points, 11 rebounds and four assists while Danny Green and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 11 markers each.
Trailing at the onset of the match, James carried the load in the opening period to take a 29-21 edge in the first 12 minutes. He continued in the second period as the Lakers establish its largest lead at 70-54 on a triple by Green in the third.
The Nuggets, however, went on with a huge run behind Jokić and Jamal Murray as they took a slim 87-86 edge with over seven minutes left, but the Lakers leaned on triples by Green, Caldwell-Pope and Rajon Rondo to take a 95-89 lead.
The Nuggets made their last push with consecutive baskets from Jokić to take a 103-102 advantage with 20 seconds remaining. After misses from Caldwell-Pope and Green, Davis secured the win for the Lakers with his buzzer-beater.
Jokić finished the match with 30 points, nine assists and six rebounds, Murray added 25 markers while Michael Porter Jr. contributed 15 points for the Nuggets.
BOX SCORES:
LOS ANGELES 105 – Davis 31, James 26, Green 11, Caldwell-Pope 11, Caruso 9, Kuzma 8, McGee 3, Rondo 3, Howard 3, Morris 0.
DENVER 103 – Jokić 30, Murray 25, Porter Jr 15, Morris 9, Millsap 7, Grant 6, Dozier 3, Craig 3, Harris 3, Plumlee 2.
QUARTERSCORES:
Q1, 29-21; Q2, 60-50; Q3, 82-78; Q4, 105-103
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
