Damian Lillard, Trail Blazers force Game 7 as Denver's bench continues to struggle

The Nuggets could only hold Damian Lillard down for so long.

Lillard looked tired and a bit annoyed at Denver’s pesky defense that focused in on him with great precision over the first five games of the Nuggets and Trail Blazers’ second-round matchup, but Portland’s All-Star point guard channeled those frustrations into his best game of the series Thursday night.

Lillard finished with 32 points on 11 of 23 shooting and connected on six of his 13 attempts from 3 as the Trail Blazers topped the Nuggets 119-108 to even the series at three games apiece.

C.J. McCollum continued his strong series with 30 points and six rebounds. Rodney Hood, who Denver didn’t have an answer for all night, finished with 25 points off Portland’s bench.

The Nuggets’ starters, led by Nikola Jokic, who tallied 29 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists before fouling out at the end of regulation, helped Denver get out to a 34-26 lead after the first quarter, one where Michael Malone played his starters for the entire 12 minutes. But the Nuggets’ bench relinquished the lead over the first few minutes of the second. Denver and Portland traded shots until the fourth when the Trail Blazers pulled away behind their All-Star backcourt.

Jamal Murray finished with 24 points but on 20 shots to go with 10 rebounds and five assists. Paul Millsap scored 17 points on just 4 of 15 shooting. Gary Harris added 15 points but also struggled to score efficiently, shooting only 4 of 11.

Denver’s bench combined to shoot 4 of 18 from the field.

The Nuggets, who began their first-round series against the Spurs with one of the youngest rosters in playoff history, are getting a crash course on postseason basketball. Denver will host its second Game 7 of the playoffs Sunday at Pepsi Center.