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The Portland Trail Blazers qualified for the Western Conference finals with a 100-96 win over the Denver Nuggets in Game 7 of their second-round series. This will be Portland's first appearance in the WCF since 2000.
Early on, it appeared that the Nuggets were going to get the Trail Blazers out of the gym. They were up 12 at the end of the first quarter and extended that lead to 17 points in the second. But the Blazers used a good run at the end of the semester to reduce the deficit to nine points. This not only made things easier to manage but gave them a lot of positive momentum.
They continued their return to the third quarter, returning to the game behind CJ McCollum, who was fantastic all night. When McCollum hit a rider near the end of the quarter, the Blazers got their first lead of the game.
From there, the fourth quarter was a frantic affair as both teams traded big baskets over and over again. In the final seconds, McCollum hit a recessed jumper to give the Blazers a three-point lead. After a few free throws on each side, it was the match.
McCollum finished with 37 points and nine rebounds to lead the Blazers, while Nikola Jokic scored 29 points and 13 rebounds for the Nuggets.
Here are some points to remember from the thrilling victory of the Blazers:
McCollum delivers in the clutch
Damian Lillard has been praised by Portland for a good part of the playoffs – and for good reason. But McCollum was also strong, and he maintained his performance with a massive performance Sunday afternoon. When the Blazers were about to leave the gym in the first half, McCollum was the only one to score and keep the game.
And in the third quarter, he continued to strengthen his comeback, finally forcing a rider into the very last seconds of the frame to give the Blazers their first lead of the night. In the end, he continued to make big plays at both ends of the ground, coming with a huge block pursued in front of Jamal Murray before hitting a jumper back with 12 seconds to seal the victory of the Blazers.
His performance was even more impressive as Damian Lillard had struggled a good part of the night. Although he also played big games in the far right, Lillard only scored 13 points in the match, scoring 3 of 17 shots.
The actors of the blazers are mobilized
With Damian Lillard mired in his worst playoff performance, the Trail Blazers needed the help of other players. McCollum was ready for the task, but even he could not do it alone. The good news for Portland is that Evan Turner and Zach Collins also came to play.
Turner made a lot of fool for not respecting his huge contract, but the man won his pay in the seventh game. Before Sunday, Turner had only made three baskets and scored seven points in 140 minutes this post-season – a statistic that seems almost invented, to be honest. But in the seventh game, he was everywhere, finishing with 14 points, seven rebounds, two assists and one block while playing a solid defense. Most importantly, he had scored 10 points in the fourth quarter to ensure the Trail Blazers' win.
As for Collins, he showed why the Blazers are up to his potential. He gave them huge minutes in the seventh game, finishing with seven points, five rebounds and four blocks in a solid performance. Collins' ability to space the ground while standing against Jokic was vital to the Blazers as Al-Farouq Aminu and Moe Harkless fought.
Nuggets burned by 3 and free throws
The Nuggets were 17 points clear in the second quarter of the seventh game and standing to qualify for the Western Conference finals. But, of course, their season is now over, largely because of their inability to hit two of the biggest basketball shots: 3 points and free throws.
After Jokic hit two triples in the first minutes of the game, the Nuggets did not score 3 at the end of the match, missing 17 consecutive attempts to close the match, an ironic figure considering their 17-point lead path. Similarly, they fought at the free throw line, missing 11 shots from the charity streak in a match that they lost by just four points. Jokic missed the shot with a chance to reduce the deficit to one point, but they gave up a number of free points throughout the match.
It is difficult to win any match by shooting 2 of 19 points on 3 points and 28 of the 39 goals from the free throw line, but especially the seventh game of the second round.
Recap Game 7 Live Updates
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