Denver Nuggets live to fight another day; win game 4 against the Oklahoma City Thunder
They were hard done by the officials in game-1; fought till the end in game-2 and were humbled by the Oklahoma City (OKC) Thunder by in game 3. So coming into the
night, the Denver Nuggets seemed determined to stop the rot at the Pepsi Center.
They did just that.
Faced with the daunting prospect of containing All-Stars of Oklahoma City Thunder, Kevin Durant (KD) and Russell Westbrook, and still reeling from the aftershocks
of losing their premier forward Carmelo Anthony to the New York Knicks, the Bronchos needed something special in game-4. A decisive push that would take them past the last hurdle at which they have fallen too often in recent times.
The magic was provided by no one individual on the night, rather they found it in each other, by working hard and believing in themselves. Last night, the Nuggets
proved the skeptics wrong and restored some pride at the Pepsi Center.
The Thunder had their big guns on song for this game. KD and Westbrook combined for 61 points, but the much vaunted ability of their teammates to step up when it
really matters, was not on display tonight. In the last three games OKC won not because of Durant and Westbrook, but because there were other big performances as well. Tonight there were not many. The Nuggets comprehensively hounded the Thunder fringe players.
As a result, the visitors lost out in the final stretch, something the Nuggets themselves have struggled with in the series.
For the Nuggets, the positives were many from this game. They played as a team and everyone contributed. Ty Lawson had a big night with 27 points, with five other
Denver players also reached double figures, compared to three from OKC. J.R Smith and Raymond Felton came off the bench to score important points. Kenyon Martin, Arron Afflalo and Danilo Gallinari also had solid games.
The first half ended with the score at 45 each. Denver had shown an initiative early on an established a six point lead in the first quarter, but the Thunder staged
a comeback in the second quarter to draw level.
Westbrook and Durant had a productive third but there was not much support coming from the rest of the OKC cast as Denver took the lead going into the final period.
After a 7-0 run right at the start of the fourth had put them in the driver’s seat, the Nuggets showed no sign of their recent frailties at the end of the game. Lawson and
Gallinari made big shots just when OKC thought they had a chance of winning the game. With the score at 89-87, the duo led the Nuggets to an 8-0 run that effectively killed the game. And although the Thunder fought back from a 10 point deficit in the last
2 minutes, the Nuggets held onto the lead, their last six points coming off 8 free throws.
Denver’s performance would have given them the much needed confidence and belief. The task ahead is still a difficult though if not impossible. It’s never been done
in the history of the NBA, but Denver have taken the first step and tonight that was all they could do.
Oklahoma City Arena is the next stop for the series, and OKC Thunder will be confident they can wrap it up there. They are a formidable team and although the fringe
players underperformed last night, they still gave the Nuggets a scare at the end. Home court advantage and proper application in the game should be enough to secure the series win and progression past the first round of playoffs for the OKC Thunder.
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