By Daniel Paiz

Playoff basketball tends to be more physical, more intentional, and a battle of matchups and wills. However, Saturday in Denver consisted of an ugly, gritty, and exhausting effort. The good news is the Denver Nuggets snatch overtime victory away from Clippers 112-110 in Game 1. This first round playoff matchup between Denver and Los Angeles had a plethora of scoring, and a series of miscues.

Nikola Jokic led Denver with 29 points, 12 assists, nine rebounds, and three steals. Aaron Gordon added 25 points and eight rebounds, grabbing clutch rebounds in the fourth quarter and overtime to provide much needed second-chance opportunities. Russell Westbrook chipped in 15 points and eight rebounds off the bench, but his deflection of an inbounds pass last touched by James Harden with 9.1 seconds to go in overtime was a game-winning play.

Game 2 is Monday night, but let’s focus on a few specific plays that has Denver leading 1-0 in this best of seven first round series.

Effort wins despite a rough night for Denver

Christian Braun had a quiet 11 points for the Nuggets tonight, but it was the stuff outside the box score that made all the difference. He had consistent defense on the guys in front of him, including making things just a little bit harder for Kawhi Leonard. There’s one play that really might have saved the win.

Towards the end of the fourth quarter, there was a loose ball headed out of bounds, and Nikola Jokic was closer to the rim than the sideline. Braun chased the ball down, leapt to get ahold of it, and got it back to Jokic before landing on the floor. It led to Denver maintaining possession and momentum as their shaky defense began to shore up. Braun’s leap and Westbrook’s deflection were two major moments that changed the course of the game.

The Clippers led a majority of the way. Their double-digit lead in the first two quarters until almost halftime made it feel like the Nuggets were climbing through molasses. Harden had 32 points and 11 assists, Ivica Zubac had 21 points and 13 rebounds, and Leonard added 22 points. They hit a lot of threes in the first half and kept getting offensive rebounds. Odd but true stat of the night: Denver had 12 offensive rebounds, LA had 11.

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Keys to Game 2

There are a number of things that need to be tackled by both Denver and Los Angeles in Game 2. The Clippers largely need more help outside their big three, especially off the bench. They had 13 points from four bench players, two of which scored zero points. Norman Powell is the X-factor for LA, and he was held to 12 points. If the Nuggets can keep him from going off, they’ll have a good chance of taking Game 2 on Monday.

There’s a few things Denver has to work on for Game 2. What comes to mind first:

• Jamal Murray & Michael Porter Jr. need to get going offensively

Murray had 21 points, nine rebounds and seven assists: that’s good right? Hitting seven out of 20 shots in 48 minutes isn’t really going to cut it when it comes to the postseason. Nuggets fans know and fondly remember “Playoff Murray”, and for Denver to have a shot that guy must return. There were some passes tonight that were unnecessary and either led to turnovers or hurried possessions. When Murray hits at a high rate, Denver creates some separation.

Speaking of separation, Porter Jr.’s offensive output tonight couldn’t have been further than what the rest of the starters accumulated. Three points on one of four shooting, MPJ wasn’t aggressive enough finding a shot and he didn’t seem fully engaged. The most expressive body language on Denver belongs to #1, and it felt like he wasn’t in the game mentally. When he rebounds and attacks the rim, he’s an unstoppable force. Denver needs that guy on Monday.

• Defensive effort

If it wasn’t for the fourth quarter and overtime, Denver did not play sound defense. Too many times LA breezed by their defenders and had looks just feet away from the hoop. When the Clippers made an extra pass, there was a guy taking a wide-open shot. Whether it’s going zone (Denver tried this a bit in the third) or double teaming either Harden or Leonard, something has to switch. Nobody for the Nuggets was truly in foul trouble, so making an extra effort would relieve some of the offensive woes from tonight.

The Denver Nuggets can beat anybody in the league when they’re defensively consistent. For the number four seed in the West to make it out of this first round, that’s going to need to be a core focus from here on out. A 1-0 lead is a relief, so Monday it’s time to fully defend home court.

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