Paul George had 27 points and David West notched a double-double to lead the Indiana Pacers to an impressive 105-100 win over the Los Angeles Clippers at the Staples Center on Sunday.
NBA scores 2013: Pacers edge Clippers, Kevin Durant leads Thunder past Timberwolves
The Pacers and Thunder continue to roll right along, while there were several exciting finishes around the NBA on Sunday.
Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
The Pacers led by as many as 11 points in the fourth quarter, but a spurt by Jamal Crawford got the Clippers back into it. Los Angeles actually tied the score on a Darren Collison bucket with just under five minutes to go, but George Hill's eight points down the stretch helped win it for Indiana.
While the Clippers managed to score 100 points against the stout Pacers defense, they clearly missed the presence of J.J. Redick. Willie Green started and was ineffective in 15 minutes, and Los Angeles shot just 43.9 percent overall and 4-of-15 from long range.
Chris Paul returned to the lineup after dealing with a hamstring strain, scoring 17 points and handing out 10 assists. Crawford led the Clippers with 20 points, but he shot just 6-of-19 from the field.
Kevin Durant had 32 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds to lead the Thunder to their seventh straight victory. Durant added four blocks and four steals, joining some pretty impressive company with his performance:
Via @EliasSports, Durant and Michael Jordan are the only players with a 30-10-10-4-4 game since blocks and steals became official in '73-74.
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) December 2, 2013
Durant also did this (via @cjzero):
Russell Westbrook added 19 points and Reggie Jackson chipped in 18 points off the bench. The Thunder shot 56.3 percent and went 9-of-19 from deep.
Kevin Martin had 24 points to lead the Wolves, who started strong but finished poorly. The Wolves took a five-point lead into the fourth quarter, but they managed only 20 points in the final frame while giving up 35.
Denver Nuggets 112, Toronto Raptors 98
Nate Robinson had 23 points off the bench, with 18 of those coming in the fourth quarter to propel the Nuggets past Toronto. Robinson missed just one shot in the fourth as Denver closed with three point guards on the floor.
Rudy Gay had 23 points to lead the Raptors, but it took him 23 shots to get there and he also had an unfortunate encounter with Timofey Mozgov:
FLAWLESS VICTORY. MOZTALITY. http://t.co/VyeTowiSPb via @TwitPic
— Hardwood Paroxysm (@HPbasketball) December 1, 2013
Jonas Valanciunas played well, scoring 18 points and grabbing 18 rebounds.
Detroit Pistons 115, Philadelphia 76ers 100
Andre Drummond dropped 31 points and grabbed 19 rebounds to lead the Pistons to an easy victory. Detroit scored 40 points in the first quarter and built up a 24-point lead by halftime. Josh Smith and Brandon Jennings both had 20 points, with Jennings notching a double-double.
Thaddeus Young had 24 points in 29 minutes before fouling out. Evan Turner added 20 points on just 12 shots.
Golden State Warriors 115, Sacramento Kings 113
Stephen Curry had 36 points and capped off his big night with two free throws in the final seconds to give the Warriors the victory. In addition to Curry's big effort, Klay Thompson had 28 points and hit a career-high eight three-pointers. Golden State nailed 15-of-25 threes on the night.
DeMarcus Cousins had 24 points and hit two game-tying shots down the stretch, but the Kings fell just short after Andrew Bogut blocked Isaiah Thomas as time expired.
Miami Heat 99, Charlotte Bobcats 98
Chris Bosh scored 13 straight points in the fourth quarter to help erase a 14-point deficit and extend the Heat's winning streak to 10 games. Bosh finished with 22 points and nine rebounds, while LeBron James led Miami with 26 points.
Kemba Walker had 27 points, including the last seven of the game for Charlotte. The Bobcats scored 25 points in the fourth quarter, but the lack of stops doomed them.
New Orleans Pelicans 103, New York Knicks 99
The Pelicans beat the Knicks at Madison Square Garden, but the biggest story was the injury to Anthony Davis. The second-year star suffered a non-displaced fracture in his left hand in the first quarter and will likely miss a significant of time.
On the court, Ryan Anderson stepped up big and poured in 31 points to send the Knicks to a seventh-straight loss at The Garden. How rare is that kind of losing streak?:
Knicks have lost 7 straight home games, matching their worst single-season home losing streak in team history
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) December 2, 2013 Carmelo Anthony had 23 points, but he struggled down the stretch and also got into it with Iman Shumpert, who was seemingly benched after the incident. Tim Hardaway Jr. had 21 points off the bench and had a big fourth quarter, but it wasn't enough.
Portland Trail Blazers 114, Los Angeles Lakers 108
LaMarcus Aldridge had 27 points as the Blazers held off a furious Lakers charge in the fourth quarter. Portland led by 20 heading into the final frame, but Los Angeles trimmed that deficit to one on several occasions before falling just short.
Xavier Henry scored a career-high 27 points in the loss. Jordan Farmar left the game with a strained hamstring and didn't return, while Pau Gasol told reporters after the game he's going to have an MRI for a sprained ankle that has been bugging him of late.
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