The AP reports:
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The Oklahoma City Thunder are on the verge of winning their first playoff series since moving from Seattle in 2008 thanks to All-Stars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook and their terrific supporting cast.
Following Eric Maynor’s lead in the opener and James Harden’s step-up performance in Game 2, Serge Ibaka was Denver’s dagger Saturday night…
Transforming from a shot-blocker into a shot-maker, Ibaka, the second-year pro from the Congo tied his career high with 22 points and pulled down a career-high 16 rebounds in sparking the Thunder’s 97-94 win over the Nuggets that gave them a 3-0 lead in their best-of-7 playoff series…
Ibaka, who led the league with 198 blocks during the regular season, gave the Thunder a third dimension on offense to go with Durant (26 points) and Westbrook (23), and his bucket with 10 seconds left helped the Thunder fend off Denver’s furious rally in the final minute…
Not even the return of Afflalo (13 points) from a troublesome hamstring injury or bounce-back performances from J.R. Smith (15 points) and Chris “Birdman” Andersen (13) could keep the Nuggets from falling to 0-5 against Oklahoma City this month and inching closer to elimination…
Nene had 15 points and 10 boards for the Nuggets, who took a 73-71 lead into the fourth quarter before going cold—29 percent from the floor, 20 percent from long range and 62 percent from the line—and watching Oklahoma City pull away behind Durant, Westbrook and Ibaka.
