The Portland Trail Blazers took down the Denver Nuggets 118-110 on Monday night to improve to 5-1 on the season. The win also broke an 18-game regular season losing streak on the road in Denver. After trailing 31-19 at the end of the first quarter, the rest of the game was a strong Portland performance to eventually take, and keep, the lead.
Portland was led in scoring by Deni Avdija’s 28 points and Damian Lillard’s 20. They were supported by a monster 17-point, 18-rebound performance from Donovan
Clingan.
The Denver attack was spearheaded by Jamal Murray’s 35-point outburst. Nikola Jokic added 26 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists.
Always An Answer In Clutch Time
The Blazers didn’t take their first lead until just three and a half minutes remained in the fourth quarter, at a score of 82-80. From there it was a back-and-forth battle late into the contest. However, once they got up by a few possessions, the Blazers were able to keep the Nuggets at arms’ length throughout the rest of the finish. Every basket had an answer, every strong Denver possession was immediately turned into a score on the other end.
It was capped off with a Toumani Camara three-pointer and Deni Avdija jumper late in the contest to put the Nuggets away for good.
Letting It Fly From Deep
Portland wasn’t afraid to shoot the three ball in the contest, making 15 of their 41 attempts from deep, good for 36.6% shooting. Jrue Holiday and Toumani Camara both made three to lead the team, but eight different Blazers made a shot from deep.
On the other side, Denver shot just 26 threes, making 9 of them for 34.6%. The difference in gameplans was obvious. Portland was able to leverage a good shooting night to turn that differential into a winning recipe.
Overcoming the Foul Differential
Portland had 24 fouls called on them compared to just 18 for the Nuggets. However, the true disparity came at the free throw line. Denver shot 34 foul shots, compared to 21 for the Blazers.
The other major factor was offensive rebounds. A 21-9 advantage on the offensive glass, including 9 for Clingan alone, provided an incredible advantage for the Blazers. They ended up taking 17 more shots than the Nuggets, more than enough to make up for the lack of free throws.
Up Next
Boxscore
The Blazers will continue their road trip with a matchup against the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday, November 4 at 6:00 p.m. PST.
