The Los Angeles Clippers have taken a 1-0 lead in their best-of-seven, first-round matchup with the Suns after outlasting them 115-110 at Footprint Center in Phoenix behind 38 points courtesy of Kawhi Leonard.
Leonard finished the night with 38 points, five rebounds, and five assists on 13-of-24 shooting, including 13 points in the fourth.
With news that star wing Paul George is set to miss the entirety of the series with a knee sprain breaking prior to tip-off, the Clippers had to rely on several of the complimentary pieces to step up.
They were buoyed by Eric Gordon’s 19 points on 7-of-14 shooting and Ivica Zubac’s 12-point, 15-rebound double-double.
Despite a horror 3-of-19 shooting night, veteran guard Russell Westbrook found ways to make an impact for the Clippers – particularly in the fourth – finishing with nine points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists.
The 34-year-old came up with five offensive rebounds, three blocks, and two steals in addition to a handful of timely deflections and energy plays with the game in the balance.
Norm Powell and Terance Mann combined for 24 points on 8-of-16 shooting off the bench whilst Mason Plumlee added seven points and 11 rebounds to go along with a game-high +16.
The Clippers enjoyed a dominant first half building a 12-point lead at the end of the first stanza which ballooned out to 16 mid-way through the second quarter.
The Suns cut it to five at the break before a 12-0, third-quarter run saw them build a nine-point lead of their own.
Monty Williams’ team looked poised to go on with it but Los Angeles wore their punches and went toe-to-toe with Phoenix’s deadly shot-makers down the stretch.
Westbrook made a pair of pressure free throws with 17.1 seconds on the clock before slapping the ball out of a driving Devin Booker’s grip and recovering it in what proved the match-sealing possession.
The Clippers hit on 10 of their 31 three-point attempts compared to just 6-of-19 for Phoenix and were a decisive +9 on the offensive glass.
Phoenix were active defensively forcing 13 Clipper turnovers and blocking nine shots but got minimal bench production and struggled keeping the Clippers off the offensive boards for much of the night.
It marked the team’s first loss with Kevin Durant on the floor – they won all eight of their regular season outings in which he was available.
Durant led the way for the Suns in his first playoff outing with the team putting up 27 points, nine rebounds, and 11 assists on 7-of-15 shooting whilst Devin Booker added 26 points and four steals on 10-of-19 from the field.
Torrey Craig finished with a playoff career-high 22 points on 9-of-12 shooting to go along with a team-high +14 whilst Deandre Ayton added 18 points and eight rebounds.
Chris Paul had a quiet shooting night finishing with just seven points on 2-of-8 shooting but did add 11 rebounds and 10 assists.
Both teams will have a day off before facing off in a decisive Game 2 again in Phoenix.
