THIS. TEAM. DOES. NOT. QUIT.
For the second time this season, the Denver Nuggets have forced a Game 7 after being down 3-1 in the series. And damn, does this one feel good. The Nuggets had a strong first quarter before fumbling the tail end of the first half, going into the break with a 16-point deficit.
Things weren’t looking great to start the second half either until Paul George literally speared Jamal Murray on a layup, knocking the wind out of Jamal. No call was made and on the other end the Clippers drained a three. But then the Nuggets decided they’d had enough. The rest of the game was ALL Nuggets.
To close the third quarter, Denver went on a 17-0 run to bring the game within one point, and they did it mostly at the free throw line. Their toughness and patience paid off, and more importantly, it completely took the wind out of the Clippers’ sails.
Los Angeles had no answer. Kawhi Leonard? M.I.A. “Playoff” Paul George? Nah. Nikola Jokic played Montrezl Harrell off the floor, Jamal Murray took things personal and everyone contributed in one way or another. Denver outscored the Clippers 64 to 35 in the second half. Think about that! It was absolutely beautiful.
Jokic, by far the best player on the floor, finished with 34 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists in just a completely dominant game. He got help from the gutless Murray and Gary Harris who had 21 and 16 points each. Michael Porter Jr. looked awful in the first half but came back and hit some big threes in the second half, and even Torrey Craig got involved.
For the Clippers, George had 33 points but was -23 on the night, and Leonard put up 25 of his own. The look on their faces at the end of this game says it all:
Game 7 is Tuesday. Denver has ALL the momentum. Let’s make some history, shall we?
