Denver Nuggets: 3 takeaways from Game 6 loss vs. Blazers

2. A poor showing in the second quarter

Denver appeared to be firing on all cylinders in the first quarter. The team shot 61.1 percent from the field to Portland’s 40.7 percent. The visitors were aggressive in getting to the line 10 times — hitting nine of them — and had just one turnover in the 12-minute span.

It was as good a start as one could hope for in a road playoff game against a team facing elimination. It was important to take the raucous Moda Center home crowd out of the equation by silencing them early with tremendous play at both ends.

In the second quarter, though, the Nuggets gave it all back, outscored by the Trail Blazers 32-20 to head into halftime down four. The Blazers shot 11-of-20 from the field while Denver hit only eight of its 28 total shot attempts despite a 7-1 advantage on the offensive glass.

The Nuggets worked hard all regular season long to secure a home-court advantage through the conference semis for this very moment. The crowd will not be a negative factor in Game 7. Instead, it will bring the opportunity to elevate their level of play.

That doesn’t mean, however, Denver can simply go into Sunday expecting to walk away victorious. The Blazers are going to fight hard and come out swinging just as Denver did early on Thursday night. What the Nuggets can’t do is allow such a second quarter showing to happen again. Whether they’ve already built a lead or are struggling to come back from one, it has the chance to sink them for good.