NBA West Finals 2023: Jokic leads Nuggets past Lakers in Game 1
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With Los Angeles down by 18 points by the half-time, they came out charging in the 1st quarter after the half-time but the Nuggets kept them at bay for most minutes.
Nikola Jokic led Denver Nuggets to a 132-126 victory over Los Angeles Lakers in Game 1 of the 2023 NBA Western Conference Finals Game 1 in Denver. The Lakers, who were trailing by 18 points by half-time fought valiantly in the last quarter as they cut down the lead to just three points but it was not enough.
A final seconds steal by Denver off LeBron James all but sealed the game for Nuggets who definitely were the better team for three quarters of the game. Jokic, however, was too much to handle as he scored 34 points, 21 rebounds and 14 assists.
Lakers superstar LeBron James scored the first points of the game with a lay-up for two points. That was the only time the Lakers led in the first half as the Nuggets ran away with the game on the back of Jokic's historic first-half.
At the end of the first quarter, Denver were ahead by 12 points, leading 37-25. The game continued that same way in the second quarter as well with Denver adding another 35 points while the Lakers could manage only 29.
With Los Angeles down by 18 points by the half-time, they came out charging in the 1st quarter after the half-time but the Nuggets kept them at bay for most minutes.
It was only in the last couple of minutes of the third quarter that the Lakers were able to cut down the lead to 11 points. Nikola Jokic, however, had a different idea as he dropped a buzzer-beater to end the third quarter and extend Nuggets' lead to 14 points.
Such was the dominance of Jokic that he already had 12 rebounds in 1st quarter before he became the first player in the NBA history in over 25 years to score 15 points and 15 rebounds by the half-time. Till the time the game hit the last quarter, Jokic already had a triple-double of 31 points, 19 rebounds and 12 assists.
Anthony Davis however, matched Jokic for points as he scored 31 points by the end of third quarter as well and ended with 40 points and 10 rebounds. LeBron also had a double-double with 26 points and 12 rebounds.
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Wednesday, May 17, 2023 at 2:43 am