Watch Houston Rockets @ Los Angeles Lakers Game 5 live on Sky Sports Arena in the early hours of Sunday morning (1am)
Saturday 12 September 2020 07:09, UK
Jamal Murray scored 26 points and the Denver Nuggets used a fourth-quarter rally to stun the Los Angeles Clippers 111-105 in Game 5 of their Western Conference semi-final on Friday.
Nikola Jokic added 22 points, 14 rebounds and five assists for the Nuggets, who cut the Clippers' series advantage to 3-2. Paul Millsap added 17 points, while Murray also had eight rebounds and seven assists.
Kawhi Leonard led the Clippers with 36 points and nine boards, Paul George had 26 points, six rebounds and six assists, Marcus Morris Sr. chipped in 12 points and Patrick Beverley 10, with Game 6 due to take place on Sunday.
Leonard's three-pointer with 24.8 seconds sliced Denver's margin to 107-103 but Michael Porter Jr.'s two throws with 21.4 seconds remaining sealed it for Denver.
Denver trailed throughout the contest, taking its first lead with 6:49 left in the fourth quarter.
Riding a 21-8 burst to open the quarter, the Nuggets stretched their advantage to 94-88 lead with a Murray three-pointer with 5:48 remaining.
They extended the lead to 102-94 after a three-pointer by Jokic two minutes later but the Clippers rallied, cutting the deficit to 102-100 after two foul shots by Leonard with 1:58 left.
Porter scored his first points of the game with a three-pointer with 1:11 remaining for a five-point lead before Monte Morris canned two foul shots for a 107-100 lead.
The Nuggets were able to make their run thanks in large part to Millsap's 14 third-quarter points, including six straight to pull Denver within 80-73 heading into the fourth quarter.
The Clippers used an 11-0 run for a 42-27 cushion after a pair of floaters by Williams with 7:40 left in the second quarter, before the Nuggets cut the deficit to 10 after a bucket by Jokic more than three minutes later.
However, the Clippers maintained the double-digit lead and carried a 56-44 lead into the break.
Morris and Millsap got into a brief skirmish with 50.1 seconds left in the second quarter, the former drawing a technical foul.
Watch Houston Rockets @ Los Angeles Lakers Game 5 live on Sky Sports Arena in the early hours of Sunday morning (1am)
