Portland hosts Denver with 2-1 series lead
Denver Nuggets (54-28, second in the Western Conference during the regular season) vs. Portland Trail Blazers (53-29, third in the Western Conference during the regular season)
Portland; Sunday, 7 p.m. EDT
WESTERN CONFERENCE SECOND ROUND: Portland leads series 2-1
BOTTOM LINE: The Portland Trail Blazers host the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference second round with a 2-1 lead in the series. The Trail Blazers won the last matchup 140-137. CJ McCollum scored 41 points to help lead Portland to the win and Jamal Murray totaled 34 points in defeat for Denver.
The Trail Blazers have gone 29-23 against Western Conference teams. Portland is third in the NBA with 48 rebounds, led by Jusuf Nurkic averaging 10.4.
The Nuggets are 12-4 against opponents from the Northwest Division. Denver is 23-11 in games decided by at least 10 points.
TOP PERFORMERS: Al-Farouq Aminu is third on the Trail Blazers with 7.5 rebounds and averages 9.4 points. Damian Lillard has averaged 26.6 points and totaled 3.9 rebounds while shooting 39.2 percent over the last 10 games for Portland.
Nikola Jokic leads the Nuggets averaging 20.1 points and has added 10.8 rebounds and 7.3 assists per game. Murray has averaged 20.5 points and added 3.5 rebounds while shooting 44.4 percent over the last 10 games for Denver.
DURING THE PLAYOFFS: Nuggets: Averaging 108.4 points, 46.6 rebounds, 25.2 assists, 6.1 steals and 4.5 blocks per game while shooting 45.1 percent from the field. Their opponents have averaged 107.3 points on 45.8 percent shooting.
Trail Blazers: Averaging 113.1 points, 47.0 rebounds, 18.5 assists, 8.0 steals and 5.6 blocks per game while shooting 44.7 percent from the field. Their opponents have averaged 109.3 points on 43.7 percent shooting.
Trail Blazers Injuries: Enes Kanter: day to day (left shoulder), Jusuf Nurkic: out for season (leg fracture).
Nuggets Injuries: Michael Porter Jr.: out (back).
