Field Level Media
Dec 22, 2018
Danilo Gallinari and Tobias Harris scored 21 points apiece Saturday afternoon, helping the host Los Angeles Clippers gradually pull away from the Denver Nuggets en route to a 132-111 victory.
Montrezl Harrell added 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Clippers, who avenged a 107-98 opening-night loss to the Nuggets on the same floor.
Nikola Jokic had 19 points before getting ejected, and Jamal Murray 18 for the Nuggets, who had a four-game winning streak snapped.
Gallinari hit seven of his 11 shots and Harris seven of his 15 as the Clippers used 57.6 percent shooting to overpower the Nuggets.
The Los Angeles forwards also combined to shoot 6-for-10 on 3-pointers, helping the Clippers shoot 50 percent (10 of 20) from beyond the arc.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 14 points and Patrick Beverley 12 for the Clippers, who head north to take on the Golden State Warriors in the second half of a back-to-back on Sunday night.
Marcin Gortat complemented Harrell's 10 rebounds with a game-high 11 of his own, helping the Clippers outrebound the Nuggets 56-37.
Monte Morris had 15 points, Trey Lyles 13 and Malik Beasley 11 for the Nuggets, who shot 42.3 percent from the field and 9-for-31 (29.0 percent) on 3-pointers.
Mason Plumlee had a team-high nine rebounds to complement eight points for Denver.
In winning their second in a row after a four-game losing streak, the Clippers led just 68-61 early in the second half before Gallinari bombed in a pair of 3-pointers and Avery Bradley added a third to help Los Angeles pull away.
The stretch included the ejection of Jokic for receiving consecutive technical fouls for arguing with the referees.
Jokic scored his 19 points in just 21 minutes.
--Field Level Media