Phenomenal Jokić, 37 points in the victory over Portland: "I felt the ball..."

Serbian basketball player Nikola Jokić played another phenomenal game and with 37 points, nine rebounds, six assists, three steals and two blocks led Denver to victory over Portland 121:113 in the first match of the semifinals of the NBA Western Conference playoffs.

Denver, which was the host, led for most of the game, with a maximum of plus 12, while Bjelzers only had an advantage of no more than four points in the second quarter.

"I felt the ball and was a little more aggressive. We didn't start the game well, it was sloppy, slow. We didn't play a lot of defense, but we found a way to win and that's the most important thing. If you take too much time to adjust, your night will be long "Portland will certainly hit shots, and it's up to us to make it difficult for them to score," said Jokić, reports Sport Club.

Jokić also had the support of his teammates, the Serb remained on the bench at the beginning of the last quarter, but his absence was not felt in the first moment, as Malik Beasley hit two three-pointers, and Paul Millsap scored in the 38th minute for the biggest 101:89 for Nagetse.

The Blazers did not give up and through Lillard and Kari reduced the score to 101:96, so the coach of the home team, Malone, asked for a time-out.

Jokić returned to the field, and the Nuggets retaliated with a 6:0 series and returned the double-digit advantage to a little less than seven and a half minutes before the end - 107:96.

Denver kept the advantage until the end and recorded the first of the necessary four victories to reach the conference finals.

Murray finished the match with 23 points, Millsap with 19, and Harris with 11 points.

For the guests, Damian Lillard recorded 39 points, three rebounds and six assists and turnovers each, Enes Kanter added 26, Rodney Hood 17, and CJ McCollum 16.

The second game is on May 2 at three o'clock also in Denver.