Aaron Gordon’s late 3-pointer handed Denver Nuggets a huge Game 1 road win over the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder.
Aaron Gordon scored a last-gasp 3-pointer and Nikola Jokic produced a 42-point masterpiece as the Denver Nuggets stunned the No 1 seeded Oklahoma City Thunder 121-119 in a dramatic National Basketball Association (NBA) Western Conference second-round series opener.
Nuggets forward Gordon drained a 25-foot effort from outside the arc with four seconds remaining to snatch victory on Monday against a Thunder lineup who had led by as many as 14 points in the third quarter at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City.
The Thunder continued to lead by double digits for much of the fourth quarter, but saw their advantage evaporate after 18 points from Serbian star Jokic in the final frame.
The towering three-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) finished with 22 rebounds, six assists, two blocks and a steal in addition to his 42-point tally.
Oklahoma City were left ruing two missed free throws from forward Chet Holmgren with 10 seconds remaining, with his team defending a slender 119-118 lead.
Those misses proved costly, with Denver rebounding and launching the final offensive raid that ended with Gordon’s winning 3-pointer.
Denver interim coach David Adelman paid tribute to the all-round effectiveness of Gordon, who finished with 22 points and 14 rebounds.
“I’m looking at ball-handling, responsibilities, leadership – he is a Denver Nugget, the soul of our team,” Adelman said. “So cool to see him have a moment like that.”
Gordon said the Nuggets’ calm under pressure had helped them close out the win.
“A lot of guys stepped up,” he said. “We had poise and a belief that we were going to win no matter the circumstances.”
Gordon and Jokic were backed by 21 points from Jamal Murray and 18 points from Russell Westbrook.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led Oklahoma City with 33 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists, with Alex Caruso scoring 20 off the bench after shooting five three-pointers.
Game 2 of the best-of-seven series takes place on Wednesday.
Aljazeera.com
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