Clippers are unable to keep up with the Nuggets in defeat

CLIPPERS

Denver’s Jamal Murray dunks over the Clippers’ James Harden in Game 5 of their first-round playoff series Tuesday. Matthew Stockman/Getty Images

Image

By Braidon Nourse

Correspondent

DENVER — In Game 4, the Clippers didn’t lead until an unprecedented 32-9 run gave them a late one-point lead. Just like in that game, the Denver Nuggets built up another 22-point lead in the fourth quarter of Game 5 on Tuesday, but kept it safe and sound.

The Clippers surged at times, but a nuclear performance from Nuggets guard Jamal Murray kept the Clippers just outside arm’s reach in a 131-115 victory to give the Nuggets a 3-2 lead in the teams’ first-round Western Conference playoff series with Game 6 to be played on Thursday at Intuit Dome.

Down by double digits for much of the third quarter, the Clippers closed to within eight with 3:50 left in the period on a mad seven-point dash that included a Bogdan Bogdanovic corner 3-pointer, a Kawhi Leonard tip-in and steal, and then a Norman Powell layup. They never pulled closer.

Murray scored 43 points on 17-for-26 shooting (8-for-14 from 3), working his way inside then out throughout the game. He opened with a dunk, found some touch from the midrange and eventually it seemed like he couldn’t miss from beyond the arc.

After a rough start, Leonard scored 20 points on 8-for-15 shooting (1-for-4 from 3) to go along with nine rebounds and a season-high 11 assists. It was his first game with double-digit assists since recording a triple-double against the Lakers in January of 2024.

The Clippers got good help from the supporting cast, particularly Bogdanovic and Kris Dunn. Off the bench, Bogdanovic scored 18 points, which was more than he scored in the first four games of the series combined. He also added three rebounds and five assists. He brought energy to the third-quarter surge when he and former Clipper Russell Westbrook talked themselves into double technicals after a hard foul.

Dunn added 15 points, a series high, to go with two assists and two steals of his own.

The Clippers cut a 22-point deficit to just 10 with 4:32 left in the game and made the crowd Ball Arena nervous, but Murray didn’t let up. Aaron Gordon, who finished with 23 points, also hit timely shots to shut down momentum.

The dagger was a Murray 30-foot pull-up jumper with 2:13 to go. The shot extended the Nuggets’ lead to 20.

After missing Game 4, Westbrook provided 21 points off the bench for the Nuggets, shooting 8-for-15 (3-for-6 from 3). He scored 16 points in the first half.