Clippers dump Warriors, force Game 6
OAKLAND, Calif. — Lou Williams hit a fadeaway jumper with 1:29 left and totaled 33 points and 10 assists, Golden State uncharacteristically clanked shots much of the second half and couldn’t make key stops, and the Los Angeles Clippers sent their first-round series back home with a 129-121 Game 5 win over the Warriors on Wednesday.
No clinch celebration just yet for the two-time defending champions, who lead 3-2 but needed more than Kevin Durant’s playoff career-high 45 points.
The Clippers stymied Golden State’s comeback effort on the same court where Los Angeles rallied from 31 points down in Game 2 for the largest comeback in NBA postseason history. Game 6 is Friday in Los Angeles.
Patrick Beverley took a big charge against Klay Thompson with 1:40 left and scored 17 points in his best outing of the series for the Clippers.
Danilo Gallinari added 26 points and seven rebounds and Montrezl Harrell 24 points for eighth-seeded Los Angeles.
Stephen Curry scored 24 points and Thompson 22, but Golden State didn’t have it on defense. Curry, already the NBA’S career playoff leader for made 3-pointers, reached 400 postseason 3s.
Durant shot 14-for-26 in his third performance of at least 30 points in the series and ninth 40-point postseason effort.
Golden State trailed 71-63 at halftime despite making 10 of 16 3s but allowed Los Angeles to shoot 56 percent. The Clippers finished at 54.1 percent.
Rockets 100, Jazz 93 —
At Houston, James Harden scored 26 points on 10-for-26 shooting for Houston, which clinched the series in five games and moved to the Western Conference semifinals for a third straight season.
After scoring 31 points in Utah’s Game 4 win, Donovan Mitchell mustered 12 on 4-for-22 shooting, missing all nine of his 3-point tries.
Ricky Rubio cut the Rockets’ lead to 94-93 on a jumper with a minute left. P.J. Tucker missed two free throws for Houston but grabbed a loose ball seconds later and was fouled again. This time, he made both shots.