DENVER (AP) — Nose bloodied, Torrey Craig returned wearing a clear mask.Knocked down later, his Denver Nuggets teammates rushed to his defense.There's no masking the appreciation the Nuggets have for their defensive specialist. Bloodied and bruised, Craig contributed seven points in a 97-90 loss to Portland on Wednesday night as the Trail Blazers tied the Western Conference semifinal series at a game apiece."He fights. He's a fighter," Nuggets forward Paul Millsap said. "Hate to see something like that happen, but for him to come back and be inspiring like he did, it was unbelievable."Craig was going for a rebound early in the second quarter when he appeared to bounce off Blazers forward Zach Collins and fall into the leg of Denver teammate Monte Morris. Craig remained down on the court for several moments as trainers came out to treat him. There was blood on the court when he left the floor.Craig was taken to the locker room with a towel covering his face. The Nuggets said he had a nasal... [More]

DENVER (AP) — Denver Nuggets forward Torrey Craig returned to the game wearing a clear mask to protect the nose he bloodied in a collision during Game 2 against Portland.Hurt early in the second quarter Wednesday night, Craig made his way onto the court late in the third with the Nuggets struggling. He later hit a 3-pointer.Craig was going for a rebound when he appeared to bounce off Blazers forward Zach Collins and fall into the leg of teammate Monte Morris. Craig was down on the court for several moments as trainers came out to treat him. There was blood on the court when he left the floor.Craig was taken to the locker room with a towel over his face. The Nuggets said he had a nasal contusion.Later in the second quarter, Portland forward Maurice Harkless appeared to roll his right ankle. He headed into the locker room.___More AP NBA coverage: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

DENVER (AP) — Denver Nuggets forward Torrey Craig left the game after bloodying his nose in a collision during the second quarter of Game 2 against Portland.His return Wednesday night is questionable.Craig was going for a rebound when he appeared to bounce off Blazers forward Zach Collins and fall into the leg of teammate Monte Morris. Craig was down on the court for several moments as trainers came out to treat him. There was blood on the court when he left the floor.Craig was taken to the locker room with a towel over his face. The Nuggets said he had a nasal contusion.Later in the second quarter, Portland forward Maurice Harkless appeared to roll his ankle. He headed into the locker room.___More AP NBA coverage: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — If Damian Lillard's series-clinching walkoff 3-pointer against the Thunder looked vaguely familiar, it's because he's done it before.His buzzer-beating 3 sent Houston packing back in 2014.It may have been from a different spot and against a different team, but it was the same Lillard — cool and confident. As a result, the Trail Blazers are into the second round of the playoffs for the first time in three seasons."That's Dame," teammate Zach Collins said afterward. "Besides the shot, that was one of the greatest performances I have ever seen. ... I think it will go down in the history books as that."Lillard finished with 50 points, including 10 3-pointers — capped by the legend-making 3 — in Portland's 118-115 victory over Oklahoma City on Tuesday night that ended the series in five games.Portland advances to the Western Conference semifinals to face the winner of the series between the Nuggets and San Antonio. Denver won 108-90 earlier Tuesday to take a 3-2 lead in... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — The Portland Trail Blazers are trying to regroup after losing center Jusuf Nurkic to a gruesome leg injury.The 7-footer had surgery Tuesday after sustaining compound fractures to his left tibia and fibula late in a playoff-clinching, double-overtime victory over Brooklyn a night earlier.Nurkic's leg bent awkwardly when he landed going for an offensive rebound, and he crumbled to the floor. The team has no timetable for him resuming basketball activities."Obviously, we're still a little down about Jusuf being out, but we know the season rolls on and we got to be prepared not only for the Bulls but the rest of the season," coach Terry Stotts said prior to Wednesday's game at Chicago.He said Nurkic hoped to head home Wednesday or Thursday."When he was on the floor, I saw his eyes," center Enes Kanter said. "I saw he was crying and everything, so he definitely was in everybody's heart. But we've got a job to do. We just got to go out and play the game."Nurkic was averaging a... [More]