Refusal to Reverse! Clippers Five Tigers 88+30, Kuminga 34+10+5, New Record Born, Western Fifth Changed Hands
On December 28, 2024, Beijing time, in the NBA regular season, the Clippers with a record of 17 wins and 13 losses faced off against the Warriors with a record of 15 wins and 14 losses at home. The Clippers were without Leonard, Mann, and Porter, starting with Harden, Dunn, Powell, Jones, and Zubac. The Warriors were missing Curry, Green, and Payton Jr., starting with Schroder, Hield, Wiggins, Li Kairui, and Davis.
In the first quarter, Zubac dunked, Davis and Li Kairui responded, giving the Warriors a 4-2 lead. Dunn and Jones scored, followed by responses from Hield and Wiggins, putting the Warriors ahead 9-6. Dunn, Powell, and Zubac then went on a 9-0 run, allowing the Clippers to take a 6-point lead. Kuminga hit a three-pointer, Zubac made a layup, and the gap was 5 points. Schroder, Moody, and Kuminga helped the Warriors regain the lead by 1 point. Harden made a putback, and Pojeim hit a three-pointer, ending the first quarter with the Warriors leading 21-19.
In the second quarter, Dunn made a layup, followed by Kuminga scoring 4 consecutive points, giving the Warriors a 4-point lead. Powell scored 6 straight points and Dunn made a layup, allowing the Clippers to retake the lead by 4 points. Li Kairui and Hield hit three-pointers, putting the Warriors back in the lead by 2 points. Coffey and Zubac helped the Clippers regain the lead by 3 points, with Davis closing the gap. Jones, Harden, and Powell scored for the Clippers, while Kuminga and Pojeim responded, giving the Warriors a 1-point lead. Harden and Coffey then hit three consecutive three-pointers, with Davis making a layup, ending the half with the Clippers leading 49-43.
In the third quarter, Schroder made a layup, which was answered by a dunk from Jones, keeping the gap at 6 points. Davis and Schroder scored, but Zubac, Jones, and Powell responded strongly, increasing the gap to 10 points. Schroder made free throws, but Jones, Zubac, and Harden responded, increasing the gap to 15 points. Wiggins, Kuminga, and Pojeim scored for the Warriors, but Harden, Batum, and Dunn responded, keeping the gap at 15 points. Kuminga dunked, followed by Coffey and Powell hitting three-pointers, increasing the gap to 21 points. Moody made both free throws, ending the third quarter with the Clippers leading 81-62.
In the fourth quarter, both teams were scoreless for over two minutes. Kuminga scored 4 consecutive points, which Powell matched, keeping the gap at 19 points. Kuminga, Moody, and Davis then went on a 14-0 run, reducing the gap to 5 points with over four minutes left in the game. Zubac made a hook shot, followed by Kuminga making 1 of 2 free throws and a layup, reducing the gap to 4 points. Powell hit a three-pointer, Kuminga made a mid-range shot, reducing the gap to 5 points. Dunn made 1 of 2 free throws, Moody hit a three-pointer, reducing the gap to 3 points. Harden, Zubac, and Jones increased the gap to 8 points with just over a minute left. After a timeout, Moody's dunk was blocked by Zubac, followed by Powell and Harden scoring 4 consecutive points, increasing the gap to 12 points with 49 seconds left, effectively ending the suspense. The Clippers ultimately defeated the Warriors 102-92, refusing to be reversed.
Harden scored 18 points with 6 out of 14 shots, contributing 3 rebounds and 7 assists. Powell scored 26 points with 10 out of 20 shots, setting a personal record with 5 consecutive games scoring over 25 points. Zubac scored 17 points with 8 out of 9 shots, contributing 11 rebounds and 5 blocks, setting a personal season record for blocks. Jones scored 14 points with 6 rebounds, Dunn scored 13 points with 7 rebounds and 4 assists, and Coffey scored 11 points with 2 rebounds.
Kuminga scored 34 points with 11 out of 19 shots, contributing 10 rebounds and 5 assists, setting personal season records for points and rebounds. Davis scored 15 points with 9 rebounds, Moody scored 11 points with 2 rebounds, Pojeim scored 10 points with 2 rebounds and 5 assists, and Schroder scored 7 points with 1 rebound and 5 assists after making only 3 out of 11 shots, struggling since joining the Warriors.
After the win, the Clippers' ranking rose from seventh to fifth in the West. The Warriors, after the loss, dropped from tenth to eleventh in the West. With their recent poor performance, the Warriors need to consider making roster transactions.