For a majority of the first half of Sunday’s Game 4 between the LA Clippers and Dallas Mavericks, the Clippers appeared to be well on their way to a comfortable victory. With Kawhi Leonard back on the sidelines with knee soreness, Paul George was scorching hot to start the game.
With 5:43 remaining in the first half, the Clippers held a 55-24 lead after shooting 14-of-21 from beyond the arc. After a miserable performance in Game 3, George responded by scoring 26 of his 33 points in the first half — going 6-of-9 from three in the process. Over the final 5:43 of the half, however, Dallas outscored the Clippers to close the deficit to 17 entering halftime.
The second half saw Dallas continue its remarkable comeback. Spurred by Kyrie Irving, the Mavs outscored LA 29-16 in the third quarter to make it a four-point game entering the fourth quarter. With just over two minutes remaining in the game, Irving completed a stunning drive to give the Mavs a 105-104 lead. However, the Clips would score the next six points and never look back — ultimately winning 116-111.
Irving finished the night with 40 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists and Luka Doncic added 29 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in the loss. And while George carried the Clippers in the first half, it was James Harden who brought home the win for his team in the fourth quarter.
The former MVP scored 15 points in the fourth and finished the night with 33 points, 7 assists and 6 rebounds. In the fourth, Harden went 6-of-8 from the field. Harden and George have looked more comfortable in the two games Leonard missed — and that is not lost on the Mavs.
“This is kind of the consistent thing in the series so far,” Irving said. “In two games where Kawhi doesn’t play, we’re just kind of dealing with the barrage of James Harden and Paul George getting off. And so we obviously learned from the first time it happened, but I guess we needed to go through it a second time as a team.”
“When Kawhi’s not in the lineup, you can see that almost they’re different players to a certain degree,” Irving said. “I don’t want to disrespect their talent, but I think they play with a little bit more liberation and they take a lot more tough shots. When Kawhi’s out there, I think they’re looking to be efficient. For the second straight game where Kawhi’s not playing, we come out and I don’t think we were prepared for some of the shots that they were taking. These are some of the greatest players to play all time, and they know that their back is against the wall down 2-1.”
With the series knotted at 2-2, Game 5 in Los Angeles will be crucial for both clubs.
