Harden scored 7 points and scored zero in the second half! The Nuggets eliminated the Clippers in the Western Conference semifinals with the Thunder

On May 4, Beijing time, the Nuggets defeated the Clippers 120-101 at home, eliminated their opponents with a total score of 4-3, and advanced to the Western Conference semifinals. Harden faced a pinch and had only 7 points, 5 rebounds and 13 assists, including not scoring a point in the second half. Leonard 22 points. The Nuggets led the Clippers by 11 points at halftime, and in the second half, they went on a 17-0 run to lead by as many as 35 points and set up the victory. The Clippers narrowed the gap in the final quarter, but they still had no skills. Jokic had 16 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists, and Wei Shao came off the bench to score 16 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals.

Statistics

Clippers: Leonard 22 points and 5 rebounds, Harden 7 points, 5 rebounds and 13 assists, Zubac 10 points and 14 rebounds, Powell 8 points, Jones Jr. 12 points, Bogdan 12 points, Kobe Brown 13 points, Batum 3 points

Nuggets: Jokic 16 points, 10 rebounds and 8 assists, Braun 21 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists, Gordon 22 points, 4 rebounds and 5 assists, Murray 16 points and 5 rebounds, Porter 15 points and 6 rebounds, Westbrook 16 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals, Watson 9 points

The star of the game

Jokic didn't feel good, but the Nuggets' starting five Tigers all scored double-doubles, plus Wei Shao, who came off the bench, and all six players on the team scored double-doubles to win the Clippers.

Game recap

The Clippers changed lineup and started in place of Dunn with Jones Jr. Jones Jr. got off to a good start, scoring seven points in a row. For the Nuggets, Braun scored the first five points and Gordon scored a basket. Powell hit a toss to give the Clippers an 11-7 lead. Jokic hit two free throws, Powell was fouled without the ball and Murray also made a free throw. Jones Jr. dropped his hand and missed consecutive three-pointers, and Porter hit a three-pointer from the bottom corner to overtake the Clippers. Batum replaced Jones Jr., Leonard scored four straight points, Butler hit a three-pointer, and Braun also scored four straight points. Bogdan scored on a mid-range shot, and Jokic hit all five shots in the quarter and was stealed by Zubac. After Harden hit two free throws, he assisted Bogdan and Zubac to score in succession. At the end of the first quarter, the Clippers led the Nuggets 26-21.

In the second quarter, Gordon and Watson scored baskets, Wei Shao hit a three-point shot, and the Nuggets hit a wave of 7-0. Leonard hit two free throws, Willis stole Harden's pass, assisted Gordon for a dunk, and Jokic and Watson hit three-pointers. Leonard hit a three-point shot and then hit a 2+1, and Willis also assisted Jokic to score after hitting a three-point shot. Wei Shao scored a basket after hitting one of two free throws, Jokic and Murray also scored one after another, and the Nuggets had a 12-point lead. Leonard scored on a mid-range shot and Murray made one of two free throws. At halftime, the Nuggets led the Clippers 58-47.

In the first half, the Clippers' Leonard scored 14 points, Zubac had 8 points and 12 rebounds, and Harden had 7 points, 4 rebounds and 10 assists. The Nuggets' Braun had 11 points and five rebounds, Gordon had 10 points and four rebounds, Jokic had nine points, four rebounds and six assists, and Willis had 10 points.

Yibian fought again, Batum started in place of Jones Jr., Leonard hit a three-point shot, Jokic scored on a mid-range shot, Braun hit a three-point shot, Gordon dunked, Porter hit a three-point shot one after another, and the Nuggets launched a wave of 17-0 and already led by 25 points. Powell scored on a layup to break the Clippers' scoring drought of more than five minutes. Jokic played 2+1, and Gordon dunked again. Leonard and Bogdan scored, and although Jokic was replaced with five fouls (all five fouls were received in this quarter), the Nuggets' offense did not decrease, and Braun and Murray also returned the color. At the end of the third quarter, the Nuggets led the Clippers 93-66.

In the final quarter, Porter dunked, Murray scored on a mid-range shot, and Jordan Jr. also completed a dunk. Harden and Leonard were both substituted. Wei Shao steals and dunks, and the difference comes to 35 points. Bogdan played 2+1 and hit a three-pointer. Gordon scored a layup, Wei Shao dunked and hung the basket to receive a technical foul, and the fans cheered for Wei Shao. In the last 5 minutes, the Nuggets made a large number of benches, but the Clippers narrowed the gap to 23 points, and Jokic, Murray, and Gordon were substituted again. Kobe Bryant scored back-to-back points to close the gap even further. However, the Nuggets accumulated a big enough advantage to beat the Clippers at home and win the tiebreaker.

Both sides start

Clippers: Harden, Powell, Jones Jr., Leonard, Zubac

Nuggets: Murray, Braun, Porter, Gordon, Jokic