JAMES Harden had 37 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists as the Brooklyn Nets won their sixth consecutive contest with a 112-108 victory over the host Los Angeles (LA) Clippers on Sunday.
Kyrie Irving scored 28 points with eight assists as the Nets successfully completed a five-game road trip. They also improved to 7-0 against the Pacific Division this season.
Joe Harris, DeAndre Jordan and Bruce Brown scored 13 each for the Nets. Jordan also grabbed 11 rebounds and recorded four blocks, while Brown had four steals.
Brooklyn’s Kevin Durant (hamstring) missed his fourth straight game. The Nets lost forward Jeff Green with an apparent shoulder injury after a collision with Clippers guard Patrick Beverley with 2:50 remaining.
Paul George had 34 points and seven rebounds, but sat out the game’s crucial minutes down the stretch, possibly because he was on a minutes restriction. Kawhi Leonard had 29 points with five 3-pointers and 13 rebounds, while Ivica Zubac finished with 13 points and eight rebounds.
Leonard’s two free throws sliced the Nets’ lead to 107-103 with 1:53 left. After a free throw by Jordan gave Brooklyn a five-point advantage, a 3-pointer by Lou Williams and two more foul shots by Leonard tied the score at 108-all with 28.6 seconds left.
Jordan tipped in an Irving miss with 11 seconds remaining for a 110-108 lead. Leonard committed an offensive foul with 8.1 seconds on the clock before Harden sealed the win with two free throws with 7.3 seconds remaining.
The Nets led 89-79 heading into the fourth quarter. They increased the margin to 96-81 after two foul shots by Harden less than four minutes into the quarter before the Clippers rallied.
The Nets owned 58-51 lead at the break. — Reuters