But it was an amazing effort by both teams." I've never been involved in a game like that - regular season or playoff. "And Rodney Hood came in and played great. "I have no idea what happened in the first half or the second half or the first three overtimes," Portland coach Terry Stotts said, probably only half-joking. Rodney Hood came off the bench for a cramping Harkless and became the hero for the Blazers in the fourth overtime, scoring seven consecutive points for the Blazers in the last 1:07 of the game to help them turn a 133-131 deficit into a 138-136 lead. Damian Lillard had 28 points, 8 assists and 6 rebounds in 58 minutes. McCollum led all scorers with 41 points, shooting 16-of-39, in 60 minutes. I can't do that to him, that's too many minutes." "I mean, Nikola Jokic played 65 minutes tonight," Malone said. Seth Curry then sank two free throws with 2.8 seconds left before McCollum stole Millsap's inbounds pass at half-court to secure the win.Īfterward, Malone said he apologized to his 7-foot All-Star for playing him the most minutes in a playoff game in the shot-clock era. As brilliant as his night was, he missed the front end of two free throws with a chance to tie the score with 5.6 seconds left in the fourth overtime. Jokic, who afterward had a plastic bag with two Gatorade bottles and one bottled water ready to take back to his hotel with him, probably will replay the final moments of Game 3 in his head. Even when I came here I was a little bit chubby. "They were talking about I'm not in shape," Jokic said of critics who have judged him off appearance of his body type and fitness. No one has ever seen a player log those kind of minutes since 1953. But those numbers tell only half the story, as Jokic played almost all the way from halftime through the fourth overtime, going an exhausting 43:58 consecutively until he was subbed out with 2.8 seconds left for defensive purposes at the end of the fourth overtime. Jokic poured in an unforgettable triple-double of 33 points, 18 rebounds and 14 assists. "Sixty-five minutes," Portland's Maurice Harkless said as he looked at the final stat sheet. Start with Denver's Nikola Jokic, who played 64 minutes, 58 seconds, the fourth-most minutes in a playoff game. The numbers from this game were simply staggering. There has never been a five-overtime NBA playoff game. Not since Red Auerbach was roaming the sideline in a 1953 East Division semifinal between the Boston Celtics and Syracuse Nationals has there been a four-overtime playoff game played in the NBA. Wasn't pretty at all times - but the effort, the competitive spirit from both groups, was outstanding." "If I was at home watching this game tonight, I would've been glued to my TV," Malone added. "It just kept on going and going and going. "It was almost like, when is this game going to end?" Malone said in the aftermath of what was a grueling loss for his young Nuggets team. local time and ended at 11:13 p.m., the Nuggets and Trail Blazers matched the longest NBA playoff game, with Portland left standing at the end with a 140-137 win over Denver on Friday night at the Moda Center.Īfterward, mentally and physically spent coaches and players from both sides tried to process what they had just experienced as the Blazers barely outlasted the Nuggets to take a 2-1 lead in their best-of-seven Western Conference semifinals series.ĭenver coach Michael Malone called the game an "instant classic." In a marathon affair that started at 7:46 p.m. After nearly three and a half exhausting hours, CJ McCollum intercepted a desperation inbounds heave from Paul Millsap near half-court to finally put an end to only the second four-overtime game in NBA playoff history. NBA, Portland Trail Blazers, Denver Nuggets You have reached a degraded version of because you're using an unsupported version of Internet Explorer.įor a complete experience, please upgrade or use a supported browserīlazers prevail in historic 4OT 'battle of attrition'
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