Dallas (dpa) – The Los Angeles Clippers managed to equalize in the NBA playoffs with a lot of effort and prevented a preliminary decision in favor of the Dallas Mavericks.
The team around stars Paul George and James Harden as well as basketball world champion Daniel Theis temporarily gave up a 31-point lead, but then recovered and brought a narrow lead to the finish at 116:111. The Mavericks with Maxi Kleber from Würzburg took the lead 105:104 with 2:14 minutes left, but then conceded six points in a row and never recovered.
In the meantime, Kyrie Irving, who ended up with 40 points, kept the Mavericks fans’ hopes alive. Luka Doncic recorded a so-called triple double of 29 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds, but didn’t have his best evening and came under early pressure with fouls. “I feel like I let him down,” Doncic said, referring to Irving. Kleber hit his only shot and finished the night with three points.
For the Clippers, Paul George and James Harden were the most successful with 33 points each. Daniel Theis was not used at all in the fourth game in a row. Game five in the series is Wednesday night in Los Angeles. To advance to the second round of the playoffs, a team needs four wins.
Out for the Suns around Durant and Booker
The Minnesota Timberwolves managed this in just four games against the Phoenix Suns. In Phoenix there was a 122:116 and the end for the Suns around stars Kevin Durant and Devin Booker, who once again dropped out of the championship race disappointingly early. The Indiana Pacers got their third win in the fourth game against the Milwaukee Bucks at 126:113 and have the favorites on the verge of the playoffs.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:240429-99-845165/4
2024-04-29 02:47:21
#Basketball #Clippers #equalize #Mavericks #NBA #playoffs #Sports
