(Photo Credit: nba.si.com)
Despite only scoring 48 points in the first half, the Denver Nuggets surged behind wiley veteran Andre Miller to win game one of the Western Conference Quarterfinals against the Golden State Warriors. Andre scored the game-winning lay-up with 1.7 seconds remaining and finished with 28 points to get the Nuggets the 97-95 victory.
Let it be said that as soon as I continue to rag on the legend that is Andre Miller, he goes off for his highest point total of the season and continues to prove me wrong.
And Andre even did something that he hadn’t done at any level in his career. “I’ve never hit a game-winning shot,” Miller said after hitting that game winning lay-up. “Never,” Miller repeated. “I’ve taken a couple and missed or turned the ball over. But that was big for a first playoff game.”
That game winner gave the Nuggets game one, and statistics say that they should now win the series. 88% of teams that win the first game at home, take the series. That’s obviously great news for a Nuggets team that is trying to get out of the first round for the first time since 2009.
Not only is that 88% a good number for the Nuggets to move on to the next round, but it might be even easier as Golden State’s David Lee went down with a possible right hip flexor strain in the fourth quarter. That would be a big loss for the Warriors if he’s unable to play in the rest of the series, as he averages a double-double of 18.5 PPG and 11.2 RPG for the Warriors, as they would likely have to go to Carl Landry to replace Lee in the line-up.
The real bright spot for the Nuggets in game one, however, was that they held star shooter Stephen Curry in check. Curry started the game shooting 0-9, and finished 7-20. Despite his poor shooting night, Curry made a three-pointer with 14 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to tie the game up at 95 a piece. That was really the only moment we saw a clutch three from the new record-holder, as he finished 4-10 beyond the arc.
All the talk of the Denver Nuggets in 2013 has been about the high-paced offensive track meet type offense, but let me tell you.. the Nuggets played one of their best defensive games that I can remember. They held the best scoring back court of Curry and Thompson in check, and held the Warriors to 41% shooting. If the Nuggets can bring that defensive mind-set to the court for the rest of the postseason, and then dominate on offense like they have all season, this team can be scary.
Game two against the Warriors will be on Tuesday at 8:30 local time. Faried will likely be a game-time decision for that contest, but as he was dressed and could play in an emergency on Saturday night in game one, I don’t see any scenario where the Manimal sits game two.
DIG IN, Denver!
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Anthony Rodriguez
Anthony is the Founder, Administrator, Editor and Publisher of Lightning Rod Sports. Originally from California, Anthony has been raised in the Rocky Mountains and Denver area for most of his life. Anthony works with the Emmy-winning student-run T.V. newscast at MSU Denver, The Met Report, as the Assistant General Manager, formerly the Sports Producer, as well as Lead Anchor and Production Assistant. He is currently the Play-by-Play Announcer, Color Commentator, and Production Assistant for the Metro State Broadcast Network, and calls games for Metro State soccer, basketball, volleyball, baseball, and softball as a “Voice of the Roadrunners.” In addition to that work with the Metro State Broadcast Network, Anthony also hosts the monthly 30-minute magazine show called "The Roadrunner Review" which airs on Altitude Sports and Entertainment. He hosts the bi-weekly "KMet Sports Show" on KMET Radio at MyMetMedia.com/KMETSportsShow. He is also the Founder, Administrator, Editor, and Columnist for his own Denver Sports website, LightningRodSports.com. Anthony is also part of the Social Media team at Examiner.com, and has worked with the Altitude Radio Network for the Avalanche and Nuggets. Anthony is a former Producer for Mile High Sports Radio, as well as a former Sports-Talk show host on the LightningRod Radio Network.
