Clippers vs Nuggets live online: stats, scores and highlights | NBA Playoffs Game 5
Murray hit eight threes and looked like the Jamal Murray of the 2022/23 postseason. There were a lot of games that he took over and dominated in that title run, and this was a flashback to that championship era. The Nuggets now take a 3-2 lead to LA, and that bodes well for them. Teams who win Game 5 in a 2-2 series end up advancing more than 80% of the time.
Game 6 from the Intuit Dome will be on Thursday at 10:00 p.m. ET.
It wasn't just three pointers for Murray, he showed he can still hop. He got out on the break and threw it down with power. Jamal had his highest scoring playoff game on Tuesday night, not counting the bubble when he had 50.
The Nuggets took a 19 point lead right out start of the first quarter, but that was the same lead they almost blew in Game 4. They made sure not to mess around in front of their home fans on Tuesday.
Westbrook settled down in the 2nd half, scoring just 5 of his 21 after the break, but he brought it on both ends and gave the Nuggets second unit a big boost off the bench.
On a night that Jamal Murray scored 43, the rest of the Nuggets starting five ended the game in double digits. Braun had 11 in 37 minutes as the Nuggets kept a comfortable cushion all night long.
Jokic had a quiet night offensively, or at least scoring the ball. He only had 13 points, but he dished 12 assists and pulled in 10 rebounds for his 3rd triple double of the series.
Westbrook came off the bench and was a spark plug for the Nuggets. He had 14 points in the first 7 minutes off the bench. It was him and Murray carrying the load for Denver in Game 5.
Murray went 8/14 from downtown on the night and the Nuggets hit 51% of their three pointers. We have seen Murray show up in the postseason, but it's been a while. If he's back to his best the Nuggets are a dangerous team.
Murray got involved early and didn't slow down. He was doing it from everywhere. Driving to the bucket, hitting threes, pulling up from the mid range. He was unstoppable in Game 5.
The Denver Nuggets took a massive 3-2 lead in what's been the tightest series of the first round of the playoffs. Jamal Murray led the way from the Mile High City, scoring 43 points i the 131-115 win.
It was Aaron Gordon who won Game 4 in LA, and he got off to a hot start hitting the first four points as the Nuggets got up early and didn't let go of their lead.
IT'S ALL OVER!!!
Jamal Murray carried the Nuggets to a Game 5 win with a 43 point performance!! Denver lead 3-2 heading back to LA!
Brown with a three ball to put an end to this game.
Tyson hangs in the lane and gets the runner to fall.
Bogdanovic pulls up from the wing and hits the three ball.
Miller down low and he lays it up and in.
Nnaji to the line after Eubanks got him on the three ball, and he hits two of three FTs.
Nuggets timeout and that might be Murray's last say in this game!
Murray with a 30 footer from the logo and he's got 43 on the night!!!
TImeout Clippers with 2:35 to go in the 4th quarter.
Gordon drills a three ball from the corner and that might have just sealed it from Denver!!!
Murray spinning in the lane and fades away in the paint! He's got 40 on the night!!!
Timeout Clips with 3:17 to go!
Murray was on the break and Powell committed a take foul so Murray hits the FT and DEN get the ball back.
Murray finds Gordon slashing right down the lane and he lays it up and over Harden.
Gordon send Zubac to the FT line and he hits one of two FTs with 4:01 to go in the 4th quarter.
Zubac on the tip in off the missed three from Leonard.
Zubac down low with the push shot off the feed from Leonard.
Murray with another big bucket, this time taking it to the cup and laying it up.
Harden down the left side and he scoops it up and in off the glass.
Zubac down low over Gordon and the Nuggets need a timeout with 6:18 to go in the 4th quarter.
Leonard from the wing and he drains the three but he's had a quiet night in Game 5.
Gordon fades away on the shot over Harden and hits it from outside the lane.
Zubac banging in the lane and he drops the hook shot.
Zubac to the line after the foul on Jordan and he hits one of two FTs.
Dunn attacks the rack out of the timeout and lays it up and in.
Jordan with the block on Harden on one end and Murray races to the rack for the one handed slam!!!
Timeout Clippers with 8:58 to go in the 4th quarter.
Leonard pulls up in the lane and gets the shooters touch off the front of the rim.
Westbrook banks in the mid range jumper from outside the lane. He's got 21 on the night.
Leonard to the line after the foul on Porter Jr. but he misses both FTs.
Murray drops another three ball off the spot up and he's got 7 threes on the night!
Zubac on a jump hook from the block and the Clips need some stops now.
Jordan lobs it up for Porter Jr. who lays it up and get the foul! FT is good after the foul on Bogdanovic.
Jones with a three ball and that's a much needed bucket from the Clips.
Porter Jr. starts the quarter off with a three ball and the lead has ballooned to 19!!
WE ARE HEADING TO THE FINAL QUARTER WITH THE NUGGETS UP 16!!!
Braun launches a deep three with the clock running out and beats the buzzer with a 30 footer!!!
Braun sends Harden to the line where he hits one of two FTs.
Westbrook nails a three ball from the wing after the offensive board from Braun! He's got 19 on the night!
Bogdanovic to the line after the foul on Westbrook and he hits both FTs.
Gordon to the line after the foul on Bogdanovic and he hits both FTs.
Murray comes up with a big shot when the Nuggets were sliding with his sixth three of the night! He's got 30!
Powell takes Jokic to the cup and scoops it up and in off the glass.
Leonard follows the Harden missed lay up and tips it in.
Bogdanovic in the corner and he drops the three ball!
So a foul is called on Harden after review and Braun goes to the line where he misses both FTs.
Braun got the ball knocked out of his hands on the lay up and the out of bounds call went to LA. The Nuggets are going to challenge with 4:44 to go in the third quarter.
Jokic puts it on the floor and floats it up and in.
Leonard back at the line after the timeout and he hits the second of two.
Leonard to the line after the foul on Murray and he misses one before Denver takes a timeout.
Leonard back at the line after the break with 5:31 to go in the 3rd quarter.
Gordon with the offensive rebound and he goes right back up with a put back jam.
Dunn running the break and he reverses it over Jokic in transition.
Powell puts his head down, gets to the cup, lays it in and gets the foul. FT is good after the foul on Murray.
Murray lobs it up to Gordon who smashes it the alley oop home on the weak side!
Leonard to the line after the foul on Gordon and he hits both FTs.
Gordon to the line after the foul on Dunn and he hits both FTs.
Harden to the line after the foul on Porter and he hits both FTs.
Jokic running the break and he kicks it out to Murray for another three ball!
Leonard almost lost it on his way to the iron but laid it up and in.
Murray with the feed to Braun down low and he lays it up over Leonard.
Murray jacks it up from the top of the key and he drops a three ball! He's got 24 on the night!
Zubac off the feed from Powell and he lays it up and in
Jokic running the break and he finds Porter Jr. wide open from the wing and he strokes the three ball!
Timeout LA just a minute into this second half!
Murray drills a deep two of the step back and he's over 20 points on the night.
WE ARE BACK IN PLAY FROM DENVER!!!
The Nuggets have been up by double digits since early in the first quarter. Let's see if they can hold that lead or if the Clips are going to tighten things in the second half like they did in Game 4.
Westbrook was red hot from the field, going 6/11 off the bench for 16 points against his old team.
Westbrook came off the bench and had a huge impact with the second team. He's been big in his series and tonight might be the best he's looked through the first five games.
Kawhi has just 8 points, and Harden has 6. Zubac is the stop scorer for the Clips and that's not going to get them a win in this huge Game 5.
Jokic went just 3/9 from the field and has 11 points, but he has four rebounds and eight assists through 2 quarters.
Murray was red hot in that first half. He was doing everything from everywhere. Going to the rack, hitting threes, stroking it from the mid range. He's got 19 after 2 quarters.
Jamal Murray is playing like he did when the Nuggets won the title a few year ago. If he can come out like this every night this Denver team is scary.
Gordon had the buzzer beater last game and he put in the first four point of the game on the board tonight.
WE ARE AT THE END OF THE FIRST HALF!!!
The Nuggets have lead the entire half thanks to Murray and Westbrook's hot shooting.
Zubac fouled on the alley oop attempt, and he hits both FTs after the foul on Gordon.
Dunn back into the lane and he floats it up again.
Murray strings another three ball and he has had the hot hand all night long!
Leonard with a tough shot in the corner and he hits the mid range jumper.
Jokic left alone on the wing and he drills the three ball! He's been quiet on the scoring end, but he's letting Murray and Westbrook take over.
Powell into the lane and he floats it up and in from the paint.
Murray hits Braun on the back door cut for the lay up at the iron.
Zubac to the FT line and he hits one of two after the timeout.
Timeout Clippers with 2:54 to go. Zubac will be at the line after a foul on MPJ.
Jokic fouled by Dunn on the three ball and he hits all three FTs.
Dunn with a flurry of threes!! He hits his third of the quarter, and this one is from deep in the corner!
Westbrook from the corner and he found Porter Jr. down low for the slam.
Dunn with another three ball and that's two in a matter of minutes, this one from the corner!
Braun gets the step back jumper to go from the elbow.
Dunn with the three ball from the wing out of the timeout and the lead has been cut to single digits.
Timeout from Ball Arena with 7:00 to go in the first half.
Bogdanovic answers back with a three ball from the top of the key and we are going to have a timeout after a quick start to this second quarter.
Westbrook puts it on the deck and floats it up and in over the defense and he gets the foul! FT is good after the foul on Bogdanovic.
Zubac in the paint and he gets another short little floater to go.
Murray again, this time from a step inside the arc from the top of the key.
Leonard streaks to the rack and he slams it home with a one handed hammer.
Murray from the mid range again. He and Westbrook are locked in right now.
Bogdanovic into the lane and gets the short jumper to go.
Westbroook strokes another three ball and he's got 14 points in his first 7 minutes on the floor!
Zubac on the push shot in the lane and he's stating to get going.
Westbrook drills a three ball from the wing off the feed from Watson!
Jones streaking to the rack and Zubac hit him for the slam.
Murray spots up with an elbow jumper off the dish from Jordan with Jokic on the bench.
Bogdanovic steps into a three ball and gets his first bucket to fall.
Westbrook pulls up and hits the mid range jumper. He's off to a nice start off the bench.
Zubac starts the quarter with a hook shot in the lane.
Aaron Gordon picked up where he left off last game and Jamal Murray got hot with 10 early points.
WE ARE AT THE END OF THE FIRST QUARTER WITH THE NUGGETS LEADING BY 12!!!
Jokic looks over the top and finds Watson screaming in for the alley oop!
Westbrook using the glass from the mid range and that goes.
Powell goes coast the coast and gets the reverse lay up to go on the break.
Westbrook goes strong to the cup and he double clutches on the lay up and gets the foul! FT is good after the foul on Bogdanovic.
Bogdanovic to the line after the foul on Westbrook and he hits both FTs.
Denver fighting on the offensive board and Jokic finally gets the follow to fall on the third or fourth attempt.
The challenge is successful and that Jones tip in will count
Jones Jr. missed the floater and followed his shot and tipped it in, but it was waved off for offensive goal tending.
LA is going to challenge the call after Jones' petition.
Jokic to the line after the foul on Batum and he hits one of two FTs.
Leonard blows past Gordon lays it up and gets the foul! FT is no good.
Jokic spinning in the lane and he gets the hook shot to drop.
Jokic with a sweet dime from the perimeter to find Braun on the slam down the lane.
Powell steps into a three ball at the top of the key and he drills it!
Gordon to the line after the foul on Zubac and he hits one of two FTs.
Zubac on a push shot down low off the dump off from Powell and that falls for the big man.
Murray sticks a three ball from the top of the key and he's already in double digits six minutes into this game!
Harden to the line after the foul on MPJ, and he hits both FTs.
Harden goes right to the iron off the timeout and gets the lay up to fall between two defenders.
Murray taking it strong to the cup and he lays it up and in down the lane.
Timeout Clippers down double digits in the first five minutes of this game.
Gordon gets the inbound and lays it up and in and gets the foul!! FT is good after the foul on Harden.
Murray with the catch and shoot off the handoff from Jokic and he's got the hot hand out of the gate.
Harden on the board with a tough drive into traffic and a lay up off the glass.
Harden to the line after the foul on Braun, but he misses both FTs.
Porter Jr. spots up from the wing and drops the three ball, bad shoulder and all!
Murray splits the defenders and goes right to the rack for a one handed slam!
Kawhi going coast to coast and he lauches to the rim for the jam.
Zubac puts the Clips on the board with a hook shot over Jokic and off the window.
Gordon pulls up from the baseline and hits the mid range jumper.
Gordon to the line to start off the game, and he hits both FTs after the foul on Dunn. He had the last bucket of Game 4 and has the first points of Game 5.
WE ARE UNDERWAY FROM BALL ARENA!!!
Late tip
Tip off was scheduled for 10:00 p.m. ET but we know that these tip offs are loosely scheduled. The National Anthem is being sung in Ball Arena while the Knicks and Pistons game heads into the final minutes of 4th quarter. Don't go anywhere, tip off is coming up in a matter of minutes.
Jokic laughing off Game 5
Don't tell Joker this is a big game. He knows it but may not show it at times. He has the same demeanor all the time. He's a happy, jokey guy. When he wins he's humble in victory. When he loses he is honest in defeat. It's hard not to like this guy, especially when you consider he makes history almost every time he steps on the floor.
Around the league
The Indiana Pacers joined the Cleveland Cavaliers as the first teams in the second round of the playoffs after a dramatic comeback win in overtime over the Milwaukee Bucks. The Knicks have a chance to do the same with a win over Detroit, and so do the Celtics against the Magic. It's currently a tight game in New York late in the 4th, while the Magic lead the Celtics by two at halftime.
Nuggets starters
MPJ was on the injury report coming into the night but he has been given the green light and he is in the starting five for coach Adelman. He is joined by Murray, Jokic, Gordon and Braun in this massive match up from Ball Arena.
Clippers starting five
Ty Lue knows how big this game is tonight in Denver and he is holding nothing back coming out of the gate. It's Harden and Leonard, joined by Powell, Dun and Zubac to start Game 5 from Denver.
Heavy implications hanging in Game 5
In the history of 2-2 games in seven game series, the home team has a huge historic advantage. The home team won 80% of Game 5s, which certainly bodes well for the Nuggets. Even better news is that the team that wins Game 5 to take a 3-2 advantage goes on to win the series 85.5% of the time. Needless to say this is a close to a must win as you can get with out it being an elimination game.
Injury report: Clippers
The Clippers are way too accustomed to being banged up around this time of year. That’s why hopes are so high in LA considering they have had and come into tonight with a with a clean injury list. Kawhi is healthy, Harden is healthy and that’s most important, but this team relies on it’s depth and even players deeper down the bench are good to go for this massive game on the road.
Injury report: Nuggets
The Nuggets come into tonight with a couple of their key players in the rotation on the injury list. Michael Porter Jr is listed as probably with a left shoulder sprain, he played last game and dropped 17 points. Russell Westbrook is also on the injured list, and is listed as questionable with left foot inflammation. This is a huge game, against his old team so you know he is going to do everything he can to be on the floor tonight.
Nugs in Ball Arena
In the Nuggets title winning season their home court advantage was the key to their success. They went 34-7 at Ball Arena and won all but one of their home playoff games on the way to winning the NBA title. This year, they aren’t as steady at home. They won 26 of their 41 games at home this year, but lost one of two from Ball Arena in the first two games of this series. If they take care of business at home, they move on to the second round, but they’d like to have things wrapped up before Game 7 back here in Denver.
Star watch: Clippers
The Clippers resurgence comes down to the resurgence of one man. Kawhi Leonard has returned to his best form and the Clippers made a surge up the standings standings and avoided the Play In Tournament. Leonard is averaging 26.5 points, 7.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists in this series has been the most consistent scorer for this team since returning to full strength for the second half of the season. It’s no secret that he is going to have to be at his best tonight if the Clips are going to have any chance at taking a 3-2 lead.
Star watch: Nuggets
Nikola Jokic continues to put up jaw dropping numbers in the playoffs as his postseason legacy gets bigger and bigger. He had 36 points and 21 rebounds and 8 assists, none more important than his final assist which was actually ruled as a missed shot and not an assist. If we know anything about Jokic, that is he doesn’t care about stats or triple doubles or records or anything of the sort. He just cares about winning, and that’s exactly what the Nuggets did in Saturday’s must win game. He is averaging 28.5 points, 13.5 rebounds and 10.8 assists which is almost exactly what he averaged during the regular season. There is no stopping Jokic, you can only hope to contain him.
Jokic pregame following ally air ball
Jokic and Gordon were at the postgame presser together and both looked like they were still in disbelief. When asked about it, Gordon joked it was a “good pass.” Then Jokic was asked if it was indeed a pass, and he admitted “No. No it wasn’t.” He then went to reference a Euroleague game from the beginning of the century in which Milo Teodosic missed a three ball only to have it dunked in by Josh Childress in the semifinal between CSKA and Partizan. It wasn’t planned, but it will go down as one of the best buzzer beaters in playoff history.
Game 4 recap
It was a wild finish from LA on Saturday night, and it wasn’t just the Aaron Gordon alley oop buzzer beater that made the game so memorable. It was a close game throughout the first half, with the Denver Nuggets leading the entire time, but the Clippers were right on their heels heading into the halftime break. Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets pulled ahead and stretched the lead out to 20 by the end of the third quarter, out scoring the Clips 35-17, but LA would battle back in the final quarter. Kawhi Leonard led the Clips with 24 points and 9 rebounds and Norman Powell had 22 as LA drew level with the Nuggets with less than a 10 seconds left in the game. The Nuggets got the ball back with 8 seconds and Jokic lauched a prayer on a fade away three pointer, but he air balled only to have Aaron Gordon dunk it home as the game clock ran out. The play was reviewed but the basket stood and the Nuggets drew level.
We are live from Denver
Hello everyone and welcome to Ball Arena where the Nuggets come back home buzzing following their last second win over the Clippers on Saturday night. It was another game that went down to the wire and this time it was Aaron Gordon making the game winning play to draw the Nuggets back to level in a huge game that could have swung the series in favor of the Clippers before heading back to Denver for Game 6. Tonight someone will take the lead and head back to LA needing just one win to get to the next round of the playoffs. Will it be the Clips or the Nuggets? We have 48 minutes to find out.
Clippers vs. Nuggets Game 5 live
We are all square after four games in a series that everyone expected to go the distance. Three of the four games have been decided by three points or less, and tonight we would expect nothing else from Ball Arena as the Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets host Kawhi Leonard and the Los Angeles Clippers. AS English will be with you all night providing live coverage, stats, highlights and analysis of tonight’s massive match up from the Mile High City.