Playoffs Day 6
Pre Game: It’s the 6th day of the NBA Playoffs, and we see #3 Philadelphia vs #6 Brooklyn as the series shifts to Brooklyn, #2 Denver vs #7 San Antonio as the series shifts to San Antonio, and in the 3rd game of the night, #1 Golden State vs #8 Los Angeles as the series shifts to LA. Every one of these series are tied 1-1, so the higher seeds look to steal a game on the road and win back the homecourt.
Game 1: In the first game of the night we see #3 Philadelphia vs #6 Brooklyn. Brooklyn played a great Game 1 and won the game 111-102 led by D’Angelo Russell’s 26 points. In Game 2, the game got more physical, but the 76ers overpowered the Nets behind a triple-double from Ben Simmons, 23 from Embiid and strong contributions from the bench and a 51 point 3rd quarter. Philadelphia needs to play like that if they want to take the 2-1 series lead and take back the home court. If they play flat and not with much energy, like in Game 1, then the Nets will take advantage and most likely take the game. Joel Embiid will not play in Game 3, so Greg Monroe will get the start. At the end of the 1st quarter, the 76ers led 32-24. Ben Simmons had 8 points, D’Angelo Russell had 7 points for the Nets. Caris Levert had 14 straight points to open the 2nd quarter for the Nets. I had to leave for basketball practice, but Philly blew the Nets out, 131-115. Ben Simmons had 31 points, 29 for Tobias Harris and 26 for JJ Reddick. Russell and Levert both had 26, Dinwiddie and Allen both had 15. The 76ers scored 30+ in all 4 quarters, controlled the game and dominated, all without Joel Embiid.
Game 2: In the 2nd game of the night, we see Game s 3 of #2 Denver vs #7 San Antonio. San Antonio took Game 1, 101-96. In Game 2, Jamal Murry had a great 4th quarter as the Nuggets came back and won 114-105. Now, as the series shifts back to San Antonio, the Nuggets are looking to steal a game and take back the home court. If the Spurs take both games at home, then the Nuggets will be in an almost impossible position. If the 2 home games are split, then Denver will also be in a tough spot because of inexperience. The key for the Nuggets is calming down and play the way that got them here. The Spurs are a team full of veterans and most of them know what to do in high-pressure moments and will try to make it tough on the young Nuggets. The Nuggets were down by 4 entering the 4th, but the Spurs opened up the lead and took over the game, winning 118-108. Derrick White had 36 points, DeMar DeRozan had 25 points. Nikola Jokic had 22 points, 20 for Malik Beasley. The Spurs now take a 2-1 series and now have an upper hand over the inexperienced Nuggets. In Game 4, it’s do or die for the Nuggets as they need to win to stay in the series.
Game 3: In the 3rd and final game of the night, we see #1 Golden State vs #8 Los Angeles Clippers. Miracles really do happen and that is what happened in Game 2. The Warriors lost Demarcus Cousins early in the game, but seemed unaffected and went up by 31 in the 3rd quarter. The Clippers cut the lead to 14 by the end of the quarter and continued to surge and eventually won the game, 135-131. The Clippers now have the confidence that they can beat the 2x defending champion Golden State Warriors. For the Warriors, you hope that mental lapse was only a 1x thing as they look to finish the series in 5 games instead of 4. Look for the Warriors to come out aggressive, trying to put the Clippers away early, and hopefully keep the lead out of harm’s way. The Warriors started off strong, 41-24 at the end of the 1st quarter. Durant and Curry combined for 25 points, Jamychal Green had 8 points for the Clippers. The Warriors opened up in the 2nd, leading by 23, 60-37 with 5:37 left. Klay Thompson caught fire, scoring 7 straight for the Warriors. At the end of the 1st half, the Warriors led 73-52 at the half. Durant scored the last 9 for the Warriors and had 27 for the half. Curry added 15. JaMychal Green had 13 points and Montrezl Harrell added 10 points for the Clippers. The Warriors threw lots at the Clippers, overwhelmed them on both sides of the ball and shut down Lou Williams. Stephen Curry picked up his 4th foul with 8:44 left in the 3rd. Durant and JaMychal Green got assessed a double technical foul. Durant picked up his 3rd technical in the 1st round, you need 7 to be suspended for 1 game. With 7:10 left in the 3rd, the Warriors led by dreaded number 31, 88-57. At the end of the 3rd quarter, the Warriors were still dominating, 109-76. KD had 38 points, 21 for Steph. Lou Williams had 16 points, JaMychal Green had 15 points. The Warriors kept pace and won big, 132-105. KD had 38, and Curry had 21 points. Ivica Zubac had 18 points, Lou Williams added 16. The Warriors now take a 2-1 series lead. They all but have the Clippers in a corner, unless the Clippers win Game 4 and tie the series.
So, I hope you enjoyed this day of the 2019 NBA Playoffs and please leave a comment on how your team is doing, no matter if they are in the playoffs or not, and also leave a comment for future posts on the blog!
