NBA

LA Clippers at Denver Nuggets

· National Basketball Association
1-1, 1-0 Away
Final
109 - 104

0-2, 0-2 Home

Harden, Powell help Clippers overcome Jokic's 41 points to beat Nuggets 109-104

Norman Powell's 22-point 4th quarter leads Clippers past Nuggets

Jokic made a career-high seven 3-pointers but missed a free throw with 20 seconds left that would have tied the game. Harden made four from the line in the final 30.5 seconds.

The Clippers trailed 103-100 when Powell hit a 3-pointer. Jamal Murray, who had 22 points, missed a layup and Harden then made two free throws.

After Jokic split a pair from the line, Harden made two more foul shots to make it 107-104 and Jokic missed an off-balance 3-pointer.

Takeaways Clippers: Harden missed a free throw in the opening loss to Phoenix on Wednesday but was 12 of 13 from the line on Saturday. Several of his 16 assists were to Ivica Zubac, who had 24 points and 15 rebounds.

Nuggets: The offense was better but the bench was 3 of 18 from the field. Only Julian Swather hit a field goal for that unit.

Key moment Jokic presented Colorado star Nathan MacKinnon with his MVP trophy in the Avalanche’s home opener two weeks ago, and MacKinnon returned the favor before Saturday’s tip. He brought out the Michael Jordan Trophy while wearing a Jokic jersey and gave the three-time MVP a hug.

Key stat Denver hit just 7 of 38 shots from 3-point range in Thursday’s loss to Oklahoma City and started Saturday missing 11 of 13. The Nuggets made 12 of their next 20 from deep but missed their final two attempts.

Up next The Clippers travel to Golden State on Sunday night while the Nuggets begin a three-game road trip at Toronto on Monday night.

Regular Season Series

LAC lead series 1-0

Matchup Prediction

Nuggets: 69.8%
Clippers: 30.2%
*According to ESPN's Basketball Power Index

Recent Plays

4th 0.0 End of Game 109 - 104
4th 0.0 End of the 4th Quarter 109 - 104
4th 1.0 Nuggets offensive team rebound 109 - 104
4th 1.0 Jamal Murray misses 41-foot three point shot 109 - 104
4th 4.1 Norman Powell makes free throw 2 of 2 109 - 104

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/lac.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originLAC https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nba/500/den.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originDEN
40-82 FG 35-87
48.8 Field Goal % 40.2
12-33 3PT 14-35
36.4 Three Point % 40.0
17-21 FT 20-24
81.0 Free Throw % 83.3
44 Rebounds 37
11 Offensive Rebounds 10
33 Defensive Rebounds 27
30 Assists 20
4 Steals 13
5 Blocks 4
16 Turnovers 10
1 Team Turnovers 0
17 Total Turnovers 10
1 Technical Fouls 0
1 Total Technical Fouls 0
0 Flagrant Fouls 0
23 Points Conceded Off Turnovers 12
9 Fast Break Points 9
52 Points in Paint 34
24 Fouls 22
18 Largest Lead 7

Game Information

Ball Arena

Location: Denver, CO
Attendance: 19,691 · Capacity:

2024-25 Pacific Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
LA Clippers 17 13 .567 - W1
LA Lakers 16 13 .552 0.5 L1
Golden State 15 13 .536 1 L1
Phoenix 14 14 .500 2 L3
Sacramento 13 17 .433 4 L4

2024-25 Northwest Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
Oklahoma City 23 5 .821 - W8
Denver 16 11 .593 6.5 W2
Minnesota 14 14 .500 9 L3
Portland 9 20 .310 14.5 L2
Utah 7 21 .250 16 L1
Full Standings

NBA News

Stat Stories: Monday's standout NBA fantasy performances

Stat Stories: Monday's standout NBA fantasy performances

Check out some of the top performers in fantasy NBA from Monday, including Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Victor Wembanyama.

NBA Christmas Day matchups that lived up to the hype

NBA Christmas Day matchups that lived up to the hype

The NBA on Christmas Day is one of the league's oldest traditions with the game's biggest stars often clashing on the holiday.

Breakout seasons for NBA players under age 25: Nine most improved

Breakout seasons for NBA players under age 25: Nine most improved

The 2021 No. 1 pick finally figuring it out? A bright spot on the middling Hawks? The stats behind the improvement of these under-25 NBA players stand out.

NBA betting: One bet to make on each of the awards races

NBA betting: One bet to make on each of the awards races

Andre Snellings and Eric Moody pinpoint one bet to make on each of the NBA awards. races.

NBA on Christmas Day: Key questions, top players, big matchups

NBA on Christmas Day: Key questions, top players, big matchups

LeBron vs. Steph and Wemby's Christmas Day debut -- our NBA insiders preview the five-game holiday slate by answering team's biggest questions.