Recap: LA Clippers vs. Denver
Sports Network | November 01, 2008
Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - Allen Iverson scored 25 points, including nine in overtime, as the Denver Nuggets overcame an 18-point halftime deficit to beat the Los Angeles Clippers, 113-103, at Staples Center.
Nene scored 22 points and grabbed 11 rebounds for the Nuggets, who bounced back from a season-opening loss at Utah. J.R. Smith chipped in 17 points and 10 boards off the bench, while Kenyon Martin tallied 13 points to match his 13 rebounds.
Al Thornton scored 30 points and hauled in 11 rebounds for the Clippers, who lost for the second time in as many games this season. Tim Thomas notched 20 points, and Chris Kaman had 15 points to go with his 15 rebounds. Cuttino Mobley ended with 14 points in defeat.
Clippers point guard Baron Davis left early in the second quarter after injuring his left hip/tailbone. He came crashing to the floor after going up for a defensive rebound.
Smith put Denver ahead 97-96 following a three-point play, but Kaman hit a jumper to shift the one-point lead in LA's favor with just over a minute gone in overtime.
Iverson then scored the next three baskets and Denver was sitting on a 103-98 lead with 2 1/2 minutes left in the extra frame. The five-point lead held until Martin drained a three with under a minute remaining to make it 108-100, which was enough insurance for the Nuggets.
The Clippers held a 28-20 lead heading into the second, which grew to 55-37 at the half.
Denver pulled within 12 points, 59-47, on a Nene dunk that closed out an 8-2 run. However, Kaman and Thomas both hit a pair from the line and LA's lead was at 16 with 7:19 left in the third.
Denver's deficit hovered around the mid-teens, until the team ripped off nine straight points. Smith got things going with a three-pointer and, after Kaman missed a jumper, Martin added a layup.
Iverson then got in on the scoring with a layup and Dahntay Jones hit a pair from the charity stripe to make it 72-64 with 1 1/2 minutes showing on the clock.
The teams traded baskets the rest of the third and the Nuggets still trailed by eight, 76-68, heading into the final stanza.
The Clippers opened up a 10-point lead, 88-78, but the Nuggets came right back to make it a contest.
Iverson and Smith both connected on baskets before Nene drained a layup and a dunk to make it 88-86 with just under five minutes to go.
Moments later, Nene tied the game at 90-90 on a layup that appeared to beat the shot clock by the naked eye. However, replays showed that the ball was still in the player's hands as the shot clock expired. The call stood as called, though.
Moments later, with the score still tied, 92-92, the Nuggets called a timeout following a Martin rebound off a Thornton missed jumper.
With the clock showing 43.6 ticks left, Iverson took the inbounds pass and drove to the hoop. His shot caromed off the rim and Thornton grabbed the rebound.
The Clippers drove downcourt and Thomas nailed a turnaround jumper from the high baseline to give LA a 94-92 advantage with 16.1 seconds left to play.
Following a Denver timeout, Iverson hit Linas Kleiza with a cross-court inbounds pass at the left side of the arc. Kleiza then drove to the hoop and was fouled before draining both shots from the line to tie.
The Clippers had one last shot, but the ball was knocked out of Thomas' hands and rolled out of bounds to send the game into overtime.
The Nuggets were without star forward Carmelo Anthony in the win, but will get him back for their next game. Anthony was sitting out the latter half of a two-game suspension for an offseason DUI arrest...Denver was without guards Sonny Weems (sports hernia) and Chucky Atkins. Forward Renaldo Balkman also did not see any action...The Clippers were without new center Marcus Camby for the second straight game. The defensive-minded Camby was traded to the Clips by Denver in a salary dump during the offseason after spending six years in the Rocky Mountains. He led the NBA in blocked shots for three of them...The Nuggets won three of the four meetings between the two clubs last season and split the two games at the Staples Center. Overall, the series had been nip- and-tuck coming in with the teams splitting the last 10 encounters prior to Friday's duel.
