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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 26 points to power NBA Western Conference leaders Oklahoma City to a tense 103-101 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday as Denver ended Houston's nine-game winning streak. Gilgeous-Alexander endured a tough shooting night but connected on all 11 of his free throws, including two in the final second that sealed the victory.
After letting an early 12-point lead get away, the Clippers rallied from a nine-point third-quarter deficit, taking a three-point lead on back-to-back baskets by Kawhi Leonard with 4:47 remaining. But Alex Caruso drilled a three-pointer with 1:54 left to put Oklahoma City up 100-99 and the Thunder, already assured of the top seed in the West, escaped with the win.
Leonard finished with 25 points and 10 rebounds for the Clippers and James Harden added 17 points in the defeat that set back the Clippers' bid to pull themselves out of the play-in tournament. In other Western Conference action, the Nuggets moved within one game of the Rockets for third place with a 116-111 victory in Houston. The Nuggets, with NBA Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic sidelined for a fourth straight game with an ankle injury, outscored the Rockets 39-22 in the third quarter and led by 19 with eight seconds left in the period.
The Rockets roared back, slicing the deficit to three points on Alperen Sengun's reverse layup with 21.9 seconds left. But Houston couldn't get over the hump, the Nuggets sealing it at the free-throw line. Jamal Murray scored 39 points to lead six Nuggets players in double figures. Michael Porter Jr. added 17 and DeAndre Jordan had 11 points and 15 rebounds. Jalen Green scored 30 points for the Rockets and Sengun had a triple-double of 17 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists. "It can't always be pretty," Murray said. "We really locked in when we needed to."
Eastern Conference leaders Cleveland snapped a four-game losing streak with a balanced scoring performance in a 120-91 victory at Utah. Jarrett Allen scored 18 points and Donovan Mitchell added 16 to lead six Cavaliers in double figures while Evan Mobley added 11 points and 11 rebounds for Cleveland. "It's a long season. We're going to go through some ups and downs, we're not going to play our best," Mitchell said. "If this streak had happened in November I don't think everybody would be tripping as much. This is all part of the season. It's all part of getting better. Won tonight. We've turned the corner."
