The defending champions vindicated their status by winning at the TD Garden, which to date has become a true impregnable fortress. Boston Celtics’ first loss at home this season after a stunning 20-0 start in front of their fans, a franchise record by far.
The current NBA champion faced off against the best team of this season. They did it without casualties, with all their top players active, and the game did not disappoint, since it was a game far from the pachangeo by which many regular season games are usually measured. Quite the contrary, it was a duel with postseason overtones, with authentic playoff hallmarks, with defenses, intensity and equality.
The end of the game, yes, may have seemed to many that it did not correspond to the notable quality of the match, but the fact is that the defenses were tightening the plugs on the attacks more and more until they achieved the resolution of the game.
Suffice it to say that in the last 5 minutes the score was 5-6 for Denver, which earned them the 100-102 victory in an exciting ending, the Boston Celtics only scored 2 points in the last 4 minutes and 50 seconds!
Key to the match was the abyss that separated the visiting star duo from the local star duo. While between Jamal Murray y Nikola Jokic They scored 69 points with excellent effectiveness, 29 of 43 on the field, among Jayson Tatum y Jaylen Brown They scored 35 with a horrible 15 of 43 that included a joint series of 2 of 17 from three-point range.
Murray finished with 35 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists and 15 of 21 from the field and Jokic had 34 points, 12 rebounds, 9 assists and 14 of 22. He only accompanied them, and very far, Michael Porter Jr. with 13 points and 8 rebounds. It was not the night in attack or the touch Aaron Gordon ni de Kentavious Caldwell-Popealthough both contributed in defense, and Peyton Watson He was Denver’s only valid substitute even though he committed a couple of horrifying airballs from the triple.
Boston, which barely lost any balls in the entire game, had Derrick White, author of 24 points, 5 assists and 5 triples. Tatum added 22 points and 8 rebounds, missing the final shot that would have forced overtime, and Kristaps Porzingis He had 21 points and 8 rebounds after scoring his team’s first 11 points of the game and finishing the first quarter with 15, only to languish.
The Dominican Al Horford He added 6 points and 10 rebounds in 27 minutes.
The first part of the meeting was dynamic, stimulating and beautiful. More than acceptable defenses, good shooting percentages, notable ball circulation, a spectacular start from Porzingis, an excellent Jokic supporting his team, an outstanding Murray carrying his squad on his shoulders when Jokic rested and an overwhelming dunk from Jayson Tatum.
It was the play of the game: Tatum made an impressive coast to coast to offer a luxury dunk, an immense dunk that earned him the basket and a technique for hanging from the rim, one of those rules that should be banished from the world of basketball, more even though in this case hanging from the rim allowed Tatum to ensure his physique.
Boston had a maximum advantage of 12 points (58-46), the largest in the entire game for either side, but the first half ended 61-55, thanks to Murray’s great second quarter.
The third quarter left us with a great dunk by Porter Jr., an excellent attack throughout the quarter by Derrick White and the Nuggets taking a 67-68 lead and immediately conceding a 9-0 with triples by White and Horford and 2+1 by the very toned White. Jokic gave a magical assist, which no one saw coming, and the quarter ended 82-81.
In the last quarter Denver took a 4 lead (89-93). Everything thickened in this room. The defenses really pressed and it became difficult to score in a very balanced ending in which Boston lost its offensive magic. Two baskets by Jokic, a great offensive rebound with a basket by Porter Jr., another shot by Tatum, 2 missed free kicks by Brown Jr., an offensive foul by Porzingis, an airball by Gordon… it’s not that things didn’t happen, but few ended up in a basket.
And the definition arrived. And in that definition Tatum was not exactly fine, first missing a shot at the basket that was difficult for him, with 17.2 seconds remaining, and then missing the shot that would have caused overtime. Of course, a few seconds before Denver gave a master class on how to defend the 3-point shot. No one becomes an NBA champion without defending at a very good level, and the Nuggets, we must not forget, are the current champions.
2024-01-20 04:37:31
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