Harden’s 37 not enough as Rockets blow late lead at Clippers

James Harden had 37 points and 12 assists, but the Clippers went on a 10-2 run in Friday’s final minute to beat the Rockets, 122-119.

The Houston Rockets led by five points with under a minute remaining Friday night in Los Angeles, but the Clippers closed the game on a 10-2 run in the final minute to win a thriller, 122-119 (box score).

James Harden led the way for the Rockets with a game-high 37 points and 12 assists, but for a second consecutive game was limited to just 16 shot attempts. Sharpshooters Danuel House Jr. and Eric Gordon were out due to injury, and the Clippers routinely double-teamed Harden in an effort to make other Rockets beat them.

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Ultimately, the strategy paid off. Harden made 9-of-16 shots (56.3%) overall and 5-of-11 (45.5%) on three-pointers, but his teammates connected on just 10-of-32 (31.3%) from three-point range — despite numerous open looks off the Harden double-teams.

The Rockets (11-5) have now lost two consecutive games after their eight-game winning streak, with committed defensive efforts from the Nuggets and Clippers successfully forcing the ball out of Harden’s hands at critical moments of both games.

The Clippers were led in Friday’s victory by 26 points from former Rockets guard Lou Williams, with all coming in the second half. Those points included a crucial go-ahead three-pointer in the game’s final minute.

Russell Westbrook scored 22 points and Clint Capela had 17 points and 19 rebounds, but both had crucial miscues in the closing seconds. With Houston in possession of the ball with about 45 seconds left and leading by two points, Capela fumbled a pass from Westbrook that otherwise would likely have led to a dunk. Westbrook then didn’t get back in transition, and Williams hit his trey off a five-on-four sequence.

Westbrook also missed an open three-pointer of his own in the final 10 seconds, with the Rockets trailing by one. He made just one of his seven shots (14.3%) from behind the arc on Friday, and is now hovering at approximately 22% on the season.

Over his 12-year NBA career, Westbrook has shot 30.6% from three-point range. That’s below average, but it’s usually enough to keep defenders somewhat honest and not constantly helping off of him.

At current levels, though, quality defenses appear as if they’re daring Westbrook to beat them. Until he does, that’s likely to continue — and especially with Harden scoring at a historic pace.

The Rockets’ run of strong opponents continues Sunday, when Luka Doncic and the upstart Dallas Mavericks (10-5) visit Toyota Center. It’s an early afternoon tip-off at 2:30 p.m. local time in Houston.

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