LOS ANGELES – With a championship ring and a tenacious veteran core, the Denver Nuggets are a tough matchup for any opponent in the NBA.
They are clearly a particular nightmare for LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, who are one game away from the start of the summer after Denver extended their winning streak in this lopsided rivalry to a staggering 11 games.
Aaron Gordon had a career-high 29 points and 15 rebounds in the playoffs, Nikola Jokic added 24 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists, and the Nuggets reached the brink of the second round with a 112-105 victory over the Lakers in the game 3 of their first round series on Thursday night.
Jamal Murray scored 22 points to help the defending NBA champion Nuggets win their seventh consecutive playoff meeting with James and the Lakers in dominant style. Denver rallied from double-digit deficits in all three games, and the Nuggets did everything after Game 3 to praise an opponent they have utterly dominated recently.
“I think every game is more and more difficult,” Jokic said. “They won 20 in Denver, they won 12 today in the first half, but I think it’s very difficult to play the same team over and over again. … It’s a very difficult team, and every game is very interesting and difficult to win. In every game we are updating and they are very talented. It’s very difficult to close a team.”
Michael Porter Jr. had 20 points for Denver, which took control in the third quarter and cruised through the final minutes to its fifth straight victory over Los Angeles, starting with last season’s Western Conference finals win.
“It’s fun to win games,” Porter said. “I don’t think anyone other than the media looks at the 11 (consecutive wins), because it’s difficult. It’s not easy to beat this team. In the last game, coming back from 20 points, we had to scratch and claw. So it’s not easy. But of course we like to win and the more times we can win, the better.”
Game 4 will be Saturday night in Los Angeles. No NBA team has ever recovered from an 0-3 deficit in the playoffs.
Anthony Davis had 33 points and 15 rebounds, and James added 26 points and nine assists for the Lakers, who haven’t beaten the Nuggets since December 16, 2022 – and have rarely looked capable of ending that streak.
“You go out with the mentality, ‘Let’s take one, force a Game 5 and go from there,’” James said. “As long as you still have life, obviously you will have belief. I just think you play until the wheels fall off. That’s what it always means to me. That’s a mindset, and I know (Davis) feels the same way.”
Austin Reaves scored 22 points for Los Angeles, which entered the postseason with stellar play since the holidays, capped by an impressive play-in victory over New Orleans to clinch the seventh seed. The Lakers have won 12 of 15 games in this series — but are now one loss away from failing to win a playoff round for the third time in four years since the 2020 NBA title.
“They have confidence in the championship,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said of the Nuggets. “This initial group has been together for a long time. Their net rating is off the charts as a starting group. They made guys step up and make plays.
Davis and James stood out once again, but they can’t do it alone. The Lakers missed 15 of their first 16 3-point attempts in Game 3, going nearly 34 minutes between 3-point buckets.
D’Angelo Russell was scoreless in 24 minutes of play for the Lakers, who managed just two assists in their inconsistent third option on offense. Russell missed all seven shots, including six 3-point attempts.
Meanwhile, Gordon had the highest-scoring playoff game in his 10 NBA seasons, highlighted by 10 points in the third quarter as Denver took control. Jokic also made nine of his 13 shots and narrowly missed his 17th career postseason triple-double.
The second-seeded Nuggets began their title defense with two wins in Denver, pulling back late in Game 1 before snatching Game 2 with a furious comeback capped by Murray’s game-winning jumper at the buzzer.
After blowing a 20-point lead in the second half of Game 2, the seventh-seeded Lakers were frustrated, outmatched — and occasionally confused, according to Davis, who said the Lakers sometimes don’t know what they’re doing when faced with Denver’s offensive versatility.
None of those issues were alleviated in Game 3, and now the Lakers are one loss away from the end of James’ remarkable 21st NBA season. Los Angeles hadn’t played at home in 16 days and had only won once at home since March 24.
“Last season, I was up 3-0 and ended up in Game 7,” said Lakers guard Gabe Vincent, who played for the Miami Heat last season when they nearly blew a 3-0 lead over Boston. “Crazier things have happened.”
But the Nuggets had a 16-4 record in last season’s playoffs and appear capable of another postseason juggernaut after comfortably handling the talented Lakers in three games.
Russell’s demise was compounded by another quiet game from starter Rui Hachimura, who had just five points while making four shots in 28 minutes.
Denver turned a small halftime deficit into a 10-point lead with a 24-10 run to start the second half led by Gordon and Murray, who combined for 19 points in the third quarter. The Lakers never got closer than eight points down the stretch in the fourth quarter.
As Lakers fans left the building in the final minutes, a small group on the Lakers end chanted “Fire Darvin!”
___
AP NBA:
This story originally appeared on ABCNews.go.com read the full story
