ONE | system
Uchi Agbay vs. Christian Brown (Reuters)
Ahead of the closing round of the regular season in the NBA that will finally determine the positions and decide the last struggles in the East and the West, three games took place tonight (Saturday) with the Los Angeles Clippers beating Portland and taking another step up. Utah beat Denver at home with career highs for two players and Minnesota exploded offensively against San Antonio.
Utah Jazz (44:37) – Denver Nuggets (29:52) 114:118
Both teams have already guaranteed where they will finish the season and met for an insignificant game for them. It was a great opportunity for the complementary players to improve numbers and indeed Ochei Agbay (28) and Luka Šmanić (23) set career highs and led the hosts to victory thanks to an excellent fourth quarter. On the other hand, the stars rarely played and Kantavius Caldwell-Pope led with 21 points, while Nikola Jokic settled for 6.
Los Angeles Clippers (38:43) – Portland (48:33) 125:136
Ahead of the closing round of the regular season, the team from the City of Angels continues to improve positions in the West and thanks to a monstrous third quarter of 26:45 scored a second victory in a row. Kawhi Leonard led with 27 points, Norman Powell came off the bench with 23, Russell Westbrook scored 20 and Ivica Zubach contributed 14 and 10 rebounds. The Trail Blazers suffered their third consecutive loss and received 30 points and 11 rebounds from Kevin Knox.
San Antonio Spurs (60:21) – Minnesota (40:41) 151:131
A huge offensive explosion by the Timberwolves put them in a good position for the big fight against New Orleans. The Wolves scored 80 points in the first half and did not stop in the third quarter on the way to a promising lead. Anthony Edwards excelled with 33 points, Carl Anthony Towns scored 22 and Mike Connelly contributed 20, while Tara Jones recorded a triple double of 21 points, 12 aces and 10 rebounds.
