Rui Hachimura scored 17 points but his Los Angeles Lakers could not overcome the Denver Nuggets in Game 1 of the NBA's Western Conference finals on Tuesday.
Playing more than 28 minutes off the bench, the Japanese power forward made eight of his 11 field goal attempts to help the Lakers cut a 21-point deficit to three with just over a minute to go. The Nuggets eventually prevailed 132-126 at the Ball Arena in Denver.
Star center Nikola Jokic put together a spectacular 34-point, 21-rebound, 14-assist triple-double, shooting 70.6 percent from the field, to lead the top-seeded Nuggets to within three wins of their first NBA finals appearance.
Denver's Jamal Murray contributed 31 points to put the Lakers, who were led by 40 points from Anthony Davis and 28 from LeBron James, in a one-game hole ahead of Thursday's Game 2, also to be played in Denver.
Hachimura's 28 minutes are the most he has played for the Lakers in the playoffs since he had 32 minutes of court time in the second game of the first round against the Memphis Grizzlies. It is his fifth game of double-figure scoring in this postseason.
