Nuggets playoffs game 2

SportsLine's model is leaning over on the total, projecting the teams to combine for points. The model also says one side of the spread hits in well over 50 percent of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine. So who wins Blazers vs. And which side of the spread hits in well over 50 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to find out which side of the spread you need to jump on , all from the model that has crushed its NBA picks. An Indonesian woman was flogged times for adultery, while the man she had the affair with received 15 lashes after denying the accusations.

Featured Game Denver Nuggets vs. Portland Trail Blazers. Replay Video. Skip Ad. Microsoft and partners may be compensated if you purchase something through recommended links in this article. Found the story interesting? Like us on Facebook to see similar stories. I'm already a fan, don't show this again. Send MSN Feedback. How can we improve? When he scored the first 12 points of the game for Los Angeles, his last five points of that run -- a step-back 3 followed by a finger roll in transition -- felt like more than five points because the Nuggets had jumped to a lead and were threatening to control the tone.

It carried over in the second quarter. His 3 with increased L. When Denver scored on the next possession to get it back to three, James cut backdoor and scored at the rim to push it to five again. Los Angeles went on a run from there to build its biggest lead of the game. James found moments that mattered. The Nuggets, being the Nuggets, made a comeback. And James contributed to it, shooting 2-for-9 with four turnovers in the second half after going 8-for with two turnovers in the first half.

But his words still rang true. Trailing Denver with 2. If Davis had missed, Denver would've tied the series and added another incredible, confidence-boosting comeback to its postseason journey. But Davis made it, putting L. Being doubted and overlooked has become part of Denver's identity in the Florida bubble, as the Nuggets have bounced back from one seemingly insurmountable series deficit after another.

Jamal Murray 's assertion that they play their best basketball with their backs against the wall has become a team rallying cry.

Playing from behind isn't new to the Nuggets. Their loss to the Lakers on Sunday, though, marks the first time that they have fallen into a hole. In the first two rounds, Denver managed to tie the series before falling down The message is: We're down We'll go out and win Game 3. After several trips to the free throw line in the second quarter, Jokic immediately sprinted back downcourt, even though the ball wasn't in play yet. No one could blame Jokic after the Lakers looked like they were running laps around the Nuggets at times during their Game 1 blowout win.

Malone made it a priority in Game 2 to try to slow down the Lakers' transition game. But the Nuggets didn't get far with Jokic playing at someone else's speed. When Jokic is at his brilliant best, he's picking apart a defense at his methodical pace, and no one can speed him up or slow him down. The Serbian big man did his best to try to even this best-of-seven Western Conference finals in the third quarter, which saw him start to dissect the Lakers' defense, and with a furious, fourth-quarter rally in which he almost went toe-to-toe with Anthony Davis.

But unfortunately for the Nuggets, Jokic did not have the ball in his hands at the end. It was in Davis' hands, and the Lakers' All-Star big man drilled the game-winning 3 with Jokic flying at him, handing the Nuggets a loss and a hole in this series. Jokic did all he could, finishing with 30 points, 9 assists, 6 rebounds and 4 steals.

Jokic scored 11 points in the final to nearly steal Game 2 for the Nuggets. After he was effectively taken out of Game 1 by foul trouble when he picked up his third personal with more than seven minutes left in the first half, Jokic found himself living at the free throw line in the second quarter of Game 2. He went 8-for-8 from the line to slow the pace for the Lakers. When the Lakers opened a lead with left in the third, Denver went on a run and got back into the game, with Jokic impacting play the way the Nuggets need him to.

Finally able to get some favorable switches onto smaller defenders, Jokic was able to draw double-teams and expose them with his passing. Finding open or cutting teammates, he had five assists in the third quarter, and Denver went into the fourth down by just four.

Malone gave Jokic a much-deserved breather to start the fourth after the center played the entire third. Jamal Murray, Michael Porter Jr. But the Lakers buried four 3-pointers and pushed the lead to with left. But as Denver has done all postseason, the Nuggets played their best when they had to. An aggressive Jokic showed up when things looked bleak.

During that period there were some huge gains and losses, with the addition of No. Murray had been averaging career-highs in a slew of categories, including points Arguably the most unique talent in the National Basketball Association, the year old is literally the only player in the league today to lead his side in scoring As expected, Jokic was instrumental in the previous series against the Blazers, averaging Jokic did what he could, totaling twenty-two points though was fairly limited in influencing the rest of the affair, with just three assists and four turnovers while shooting a middling of from the floor.

Despite putting over a decade of ineptitude behind them, Phoenix entered the postseason as a clear underdog in the first nd matchup against the defending champion, Lakers, marking the first time that a Seven Seed was ever favored over a Two.