Trail Blazers stun Denver to advance in Western
The Trail Blazers, in danger of getting blown out early Sunday, maintained their poise and rallied past the Nuggets for a 100-96 victory in Game 7 of the NBA Western Conference semifinals.
Portland trailed by as many as 17 points in the first half, when Trail Blazers star Damian Lillard was 1-for-9 shooting from the field.
Lillard continued to struggle in the second half, but his backcourt mate, C.J. McCollum, fueled Portland’s comeback with 37 points.
Portland, advancing to the Western Conference finals for the first time since 2000, will face the Warriors. Game 1 of the best-of-seven series is set for Tuesday in Oakland, California.
While the Trail Blazers are looking for their first appearance in the NBA Finals since 1992, the Warriors are looking for their third consecutive NBA championship and fourth in five seasons.
On Sunday, the Nuggets got the Pepsi Center in Denver rocking early when they opened up a 17-point lead in the first half. Denver took its biggest lead with 7:26 left in the first half when Monte Morris’ basket put the Nuggets up 39-22.
But the Trail Blazers trimmed that deficit to 48-39 by halftime and took their first lead of the game with 12.1 seconds remaining in the third quarter when McCollum’s short jumper put Portland ahead of Denver 71-70 and led by as many as seven points in the fourth quarter.