LOS ANGELES Clippers moved closer to securing an NBA playoff berth after a 136-125 triumph over shorthanded Portland Trail Blazers in the 2022-2023 NBA Season on Saturday night (Sunday in the Philippines) at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California.
Kawhi Leonard led the way with 27 points, while Norman Powell added 23 markers as the Clippers moved into fifth place in the Western Conference with the same record as Golden State Warriors.
The Clippers can formalize their NBA playoffs entry if they defeat no. 4 seed Phoenix Suns on Sunday night (Monday in the Philippines). The Suns already announced that they will rest their star players in the contest.
Down by as much as 10 points in the opening half, the Clippers turned things around in the third quarter as they dropped eight three-pointers, mostly from Leonard, to seize control.
The Clippers went on to lead by as much as 19 points in the fourth quarter before the Trail Blazers made some late rally to cut the deficit to as low as nine points.
âWe started a little slow,â said Clippers center Ivica Zubac. âWe knew we had to pick it up, we needed a win so we came out with a lot of energy and we got the job done.â
Minnesota Timberwolves, meanwhile, got a morale boosting victory ahead of the knockout play-in tournament following a lopsided 151-131 victory over the San Antonio Spurs.
Anthony Edwards scored game-high 33 points, while Karl-Anthony Towns added 22 points for the Tâwolves, which drilled a season-high 24 three-pointers and set a franchise record for points scored in their win.
No.1 seed Denver Nuggets continued their struggle heading into the NBA Playoffs after a 118-114 defeat to undermanned Utah Jazz for their fifth loss in their last six matches.
Ochai Agbaji led the way with 28 points, while Luka Samanic scored a career-high 23 points for the eliminated Jazz, which rested almost all its starters, led by Filipino-American guard Jordan Clarkson./PN
