04/28/24 07:26:00
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04/28 19:24 CDT Paul George, James Harden help Clippers even series with Mavs
at 2-2 after blowing 31-point lead
Paul George, James Harden help Clippers even series with Mavs at 2-2 after
blowing 31-point lead
By SCHUYLER DIXON
AP Sports Writer
DALLAS (AP) --- Paul George and James Harden are two-for-two without Kawhi
Leonard in the Los Angeles Clippers' first-round playoff series against Luka
Doncic, Kyrie Irving and the Dallas Mavericks.
The healthy LA stars can afford to shrug over the blown 31-point lead in Game 4.
George and Harden each scored 33 points while playing key fourth-quarter roles
to help the Clippers hold off a huge rally fueled mostly by Irving for a
116-111 victory Sunday to even the first-round series at 2-2.
"We knew they would make a run," Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. "But also, we
didn't think we'd come into this building and be up 31 points either. So I told
our team, just get the win, however you've got to get it. In the playoffs, it
don't matter how you win."
Leonard was out with right knee inflammation again after missing the series
opener, then playing in both Dallas victories. The Clippers aren't sure he'll
make it back for the third Western Conference first-round meeting between these
teams in the past five seasons.
The teams have split a pair on each other's home court. Game 5 is Wednesday
night in Los Angeles.
Irving scored 40 points for Dallas, including an acrobatic layup with 2:15
remaining for a 105-104 lead that was the first for the Mavericks since the
middle of the first quarter.
Doncic had 29 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in his fourth career playoff
triple-double --- all against the Clippers --- while clearly struggling with
right knee soreness that had him questionable until he warmed up before the
game.
"He did everything he could," coach Jason Kidd said. "I thought he competed on
both ends. He put us in position to take the lead there in the fourth. We just
came up short."
George scored 26 points in the first half, when the Clippers' lead reached
55-24 on a 3-pointer by Harden. The high-scoring stars combined to go 11 of 15
from long range as LA finished 18 of 29 overall.
After Irving's go-ahead layup, George hit his first basket of the second half,
a fadeaway 3 from the corner. Irving missed a layup, and Harden converted a
three-point play for a 110-105 lead. The 10-time All-Star scored 15 points in
the fourth, hitting five of his well-known floaters that were mostly absent in
the first three games.
This is part of why the Clippers added Harden in an early-season trade, giving
them another option with a star such as Leonard sidelined.
"I'm blessed to be able to change it up and be a facilitator or a scorer,"
Harden said. "My mindset coming to this team was doing whatever it takes to win
and get to the end goal. Whether that's scoring or facilitating, I think it
goes possession by possession and game by game."
The Clippers tied a franchise playoff record for a quarter with eight 3s in the
first, and George had three of them while scoring his playoff first-quarter
high with 16 points to match the Mavericks and help build a 39-16 lead.
Harden's 3 for the 31-point lead midway through the second quarter came not
long after Doncic was called for a technical foul coming down the court when
his miss dropped Dallas to 0-11 from long range..
It was almost a replay of Game 1, when the Leonard-less Clippers led by 26 at
halftime and 29 early in the third quarter. Minus the massive rally, although
Dallas did whittle the deficit in the second half of the opener.
"This is like Game 1," Kidd said. "Early game, for whatever reason we just
haven't played well. We've gotten off to slow starts. That's just something
that we've got to talk about as a team. If there's another afternoon game,
we've got to make sure we're ready to go from the jump and we can't wait."
Irving hit the next two 3s for Dallas, and the rally was on. He scored 16 in
the second quarter and kept it going in the third, finishing those two quarters
with 26 after a scoreless first. Dallas trailed by four entering the fourth
quarter.
"We dug ourselves in a hole," Irving said. "There's no time to complain about
it or look to each other for any excuses. It was just time to get it going.
Fell short, but this is a consistent thing in this series so far where Kawhi
doesn't play and we're just dealing with a barrage of James Harden and Paul
George getting off."
___
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