Jamal Murray's Nuggets get Game 7 as Clippers collapse again

The Denver Nuggets produced another remarkable recovery to beat the Los Angeles Clippers 111-98 on Sunday and secure a Game 7 in the Western Conference semi-finals.

Denver, who came from 3-1 down to beat the Utah Jazz in seven games in the previous round, had overturned a 16-point deficit against the Clippers in Game 5 to keep their seemingly slim title hopes alive.

This time, the Clippers – looking to reach a mouth-watering match-up against rivals the Lakers – were up by as many as 19 points at one stage in the third.

But the Nuggets never gave up and their star duo of Nikola Jokic (34 points and 14 rebounds) and Jamal Murray (21 points) inspired a second straight stunning win.

The game looked to have moved away from Denver at the end of a damaging first half in which they had 10 turnovers, a 10-0 run led by Paul George (33 points) and Kawhi Leonard (25 points) putting the Clippers in control.

Things went from bad to worse for the Nuggets early in the third when Murray went down with a knock to his groin as George blocked, and Leonard and his team stretched into a game-high lead.

But Murray bravely battled on and a 17-0 run took his team to within one with three minutes left in the third.

The momentum then swung entirely in the final period, with the Clippers shellshocked as Patrick Beverley fouled out and Denver seized the initiative, keeping the Lakers waiting with a flurry of late scores.

Game 7 is on Tuesday.

Published 14 Sep 2020, 02:54 IST
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