Aaron Gordon had six of his 25 points in overtime, Russell Westbrook came up with a big defensive play in the final seconds and the host Denver Nuggets rallied to beat the Los Angeles Clippers 112-110 in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series on Saturday.
Nikola Jokic finished with 29 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds, Jamal Murray scored 21 points, Westbrook finished with 15 and Christian Braun had 11 for the Nuggets.
Game 2 is Monday night in Denver.
The Nuggets took a three-point lead with 2:24 left in overtime but James Harden cut it to 105-104 on a floater in the lane. Jokic fed Braun for a 3-pointer with 59 seconds left but Harden answered from deep with 27 seconds left.
Gordon made two free throws with 10.9 seconds left and Westbrook deflected the Clippers’ inbounds pass off of Harden. Jokic made two free throws with 6.5 seconds left to seal it.
Harden led Los Angeles with 32 points and had 11 assists, Ivica Zubac finished with 21 points and 13 rebounds, Kawhi Leonard scored 22, Norman Powell contributed 12 and Kris Dunn finished with 11.
After Denver trailed for most of the game, Murray’s 3-pointer with 7:31 left in the fourth tied it at 81-all, but Los Angeles surged to an 87-81 lead.
Murray and Gordon hit 3-pointers to cut it to 92-91 with 4:19 left, and Westbrook’s putback gave Denver its first lead since the first quarter.
The Clippers went back in front 94-93 and had a chance to extend the lead but Leonard turned it over with 33 seconds left.
Westbrook hit a corner 3-pointer with 24 seconds left to make it 98-96, Harden tied it with a floater with 18 seconds left and the Nuggets couldn’t get a shot off before the end of the quarter.
The Clippers led by as much as 15 in the second quarter but Denver closed the gap in the final 5:11 to trail 53-49 at halftime. The Nuggets closed within 75-72 heading into the fourth.