DENVER — The Clippers dropped a 112-110 overtime game to the Denver Nuggets on Saturday at Ball Arena to open the playoffs.
They are down 1-0 in the best-of-seven series because Russell Westbrook was as a menace against his former team and supplied the Nuggets with the energy and big plays they needed to get the win.
Westbrook’s last big play was knocking the ball off of James Harden’s hand with 9.6 seconds left in the overtime.
Nikola Jokic made two free throws for a 112-107 lead with 6.5 seconds remaining that sealed the victory.
We’re in good shape,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. “We just got to do what we’re supposed to do and what we talked about. We can’t turn the ball over 20 times…We just got to be better with our execution. I think defensively understanding what we’re doing and then offensively understanding how we want to attack them.”
Jokic finished with 29 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds.
Harden led the Clippers with 32 points and 11 assists.
Westbrook had 15 points, including two big threes, and eight rebounds and two steals.
The Clippers turned the ball over 20 times.
Jokic not only picked up his fourth foul by getting a double-foul with Ben Simmons in the fourth, he was also hit with a technical foul with 6:41 left.
Jokic felt he was struck in the face by Derrick Jones Jr., knocking him to the court. But no foul was called, drawing the ire of Jokic toward an official who issued the technical foul in a game that was getting tense and tighter as it went along.
Then with 1:27 left and the Nuggets leading by one, Jokic got an offensive rebound and was fouled but he missed both free throws, leaving the Clippers down 95-94.
The Clippers took advantage when Ivica Zubac scored on a goaltending call on Aaron Gordon, giving the Clippers a 96-95 lead with 1:11 left.
But the Clippers turned the ball over after Kawhi Leonard had it bounce off his hip with 33.5 seconds left and the Clippers still up by one.
The Nuggets called a timeout to call an important play after the Clippers’ challenge was unsuccessful.
Jokic, unafraid to make the right pass, and Westbrook, unafraid to take the big shot, combined to make the play. Jokic hit Westbrook in the corner for a three-pointer and a 98-96 Nuggets lead with 23.4 seconds left.
But Harden drove inside for a floater to tie the score at 98-98 with 18.7 seconds left.
That left the ball in Denver’s hands for the final shot.
But the Clippers played great defense and eventually Westbrook intended to put up the ball but could not get off a shot, sending the game into OT tied 98-98.
Harden picked up his fourth foul with 9 minutes and 10 seconds left in the third quarter, but played all 12 minutes in the quarter. Harden didn’t pick up another one before it was over.
Along the way in this game, Harden established himself as one of the NBA’s playoff greats.
He has scored (3,796) career points in the postseason, pushing him past John Havlicek for sole possession of 14th place on the NBA’s all-time playoff points list. Harden has (1,072) assists in the postseason, pushing him past Larry Bird for sole possession of eighth place on the all-time playoff assists list.
When Harden picked up his second foul with 4:55 left in the first quarter, the Clippers had a decision to make. They left him in the game and he immediately attacked with three consecutive drives to the basket — one turning into a three-point play — resulting in an early 12-point lead for the Clippers.
Harden didn’t waver in his play, staying aggressive the rest of the way in playing all 12 minutes in the first, finishing it off with a three-pointer at the buzzer that gave him 15 points on six-for-11 shooting.
Harden’s play seemed to ignite the Clippers, as they built a 15-point lead in the second quarter.
But the Clippers got sloppy with the basketball as the quarter continued, turning it over eight times in the second, leading to the Nuggets trimming L.A.’s lead to 53-49 at the half.
By the end of the third quarter, the game was still close.
But the Clippers still had the lead at 75-72.