The Los Angeles Clippers defeated the visiting Dallas Mavericks 109-97 in Game 1 of the first round of the Western Conference series, with James Harden scoring 28 points and Ivica Zubac adding 20 points and 15 rebounds to advance to the playoffs. He set a career high.
The fourth-seeded Clippers were playing without star Kawhi Leonard due to knee inflammation, but Paul George scored 22 points and Terrence Mann and Russell Westbrook each added 13 points for the Mavericks. It had enough power to break through. Mann had nine rebounds and Harden had a rebound. Recorded 8 assists.
Los Angeles' high-level defense was strong from the start, holding Dallas to just eight points in the second quarter and 30 points in the first half. The Clippers led by 29 points multiple times in the third quarter.
For the Mavericks, Luka Doncic had 33 points and 13 rebounds, and Kyrie Irving added 31 points. After Dallas was seeded for the playoffs, they won 16 of 18 games, played mostly reserves in the final two games, and ended the regular season with losses in both games.
PJ Washington scored 11 points for Dallas, shooting 22 percent in the first half, but shot just 9.5 percent in the second quarter, when the Clippers turned a 34-22 lead into a 56-30 advantage. (2 out of 21).
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Mavericks center Daniel Gafford played just six minutes in the first half because of a sprained left ankle, but returned in the second half. Irving made 1 of 6 shots from the floor in the first half, while Doncic made 4 of 11. The star duo made 1 of 10 3-pointers in the first two quarters.
Dallas improved significantly in the third quarter, scoring 34 points, exceeding their first-half total, but still trailed 87-64 heading into the final period.
The Mavericks took a 90-75 lead on Doncic's 3-pointer with 8:22 left. With 6 minutes and 12 seconds remaining, Mann's 3-pointer jumped Los Angeles to a 100-78 advantage, and from there they grabbed the victory.
The Clippers shot 46.0 percent from the floor while the Mavericks finished with 38.8 percent.
Game 2 of the series is scheduled for Tuesday in Los Angeles.
