Pinoyliga Daily NBA Recap: Lakers Dominate Nuggets in West Finals Opener

The Denver Nuggets have erased double-digit leads and even came back from a 3-1 series hole twice in the 2020 National Basketball Association (NBA) playoffs. Unfortunately, they couldn't do it against the top-seeded team in the Western Conference.

The Los Angeles Lakers scored 34 and 33 points in the second and third quarters respectively en route to a 126-114 victory to open the Western Conference Finals against the Denver Nuggets who came off a tiring semifinal series against the Los Angeles Clippers.  Five Lakers scored in double figures led by Anthony Davis who scored 37 points. Kentavious Cardwell-Pope added 18 points while shooting three for five from the three-point line.  LeBron James finished with 15 points, 12 assists, and six rebounds.

The Lakers also got timely contributions from their reserves as Dwight Howard finished with 13 points on four for five field goal shooting and five for eight free-throw shooting. He also helped lure Nikola Jokic into foul trouble. Kyle Kuzma added 11 points while Markieff Morris shot three for four from long distance to finish with 9 points. Rajon Rondo had another all-around game with seven points, nine assists, and two steals. The Lakers shot 53% from the field, 42% from three, and attempted 37 free throws- making 27 of them. 

Nikola Joikic and Jamal Murray each scored 21 points for Denver who held a two-point lead after the first quarter. Michael Porter Jr. finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds. The Nuggets couldn't keep the ball rolling after cutting the deficit down to single digits in the first half and fell behind by as much as 27 points in the second half. 

Photo is from Denver Stiffs