Did you catch Game 3 between the Portland Trailblazers and Denver Nuggets? Portland edged Denver in 4OT thriller in Game 3. This was the first 4OT game in the playoffs since 1953. The 4OT game was only the second ever in playoff history. Portland walked away with a 140-137 win as the final buzzer went off a little after 2 in the morning on the East Coast. Honestly, there were times that the bed was calling my name, but this game was too damn good. For Portland, Damian Lillard have garnered all the attention throughout the playoffs, but this was all about C.J. McCollum. Damian Lillard finished with 28 points, but he finally started hitting big shots towards the end. On the other hand, C.J. McCollum finished with 41 points as he hit an array of clutch shots to lead the Trailblazers.
McCollum played 60 minutes to lead the Trailblazers, but Rodney Hood sparked the Portland offense in the last OT period. Hood came off the bench to hit several clutch shots as he came into the game energized. Despite being injured throughout the game, Enes Kanter finished with 18 points and 15 rebounds. Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray lead Denver and Jokic played 65 minutes, which was the most by anyone on either team. Jokic also finished with a triple-double with 33 points, 18 rebounds and 14 assists. Jamal Murray finished with a team-high 34 points as he’s nursing a couple of nagging injuries. Will Barton sparked the Nuggets with 22 points off the bench, but it wasn’t enough. Game 4 will be played less than 48 hours after this 4OT thriller, so how energy will both teams have?
Can the Trailblazers take one step closer to making their first conference finals in almost 20 years? Will the Nuggets tie the series and take back homecourt advantage? How will fatigue effect this game? Leave some feedback about anything related to this series below.
