Los Angeles - Saba:
The Denver Nuggets clinched Game 7 against the Los Angeles Clippers 120-101, securing a 4-3 series victory and advancing to the NBA Western Conference semifinals.
Denver faced the Oklahoma City Thunder, who had the best regular-season record, in an exciting matchup between two MVP candidates: Denver's Serbian Nikola Jokic and Canadian Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Three players contributed to Denver's victory: Aaron Gordon scored 22 points and Christian Brown 21, while Jokic scored 16 points amidst a tight Clippers defense. Kawhi Leonard led the Clippers with 22 points, while James Harden scored just seven.
The Clippers led 26-21 at the end of the first quarter, as their players managed to limit Jokic's effectiveness, who did not score a single point in the first 12 minutes. However, the Nuggets rallied in the second quarter, scoring 37 points to take a 58-47 halftime lead.
Denver continued their dominance in the third quarter, scoring 17 consecutive points to take a comfortable 25-point lead (75-50) at one point.
The Nuggets entered the final quarter with a 93-66 lead and maintained that lead until the end of the game.
The Nuggets entered the playoffs under difficult circumstances after firing coach Michael Malone three games before the end of the regular season and appointing interim coach David Adelman.
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