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LOS ANGELES — Familiar playoff foes, the Clippers and Dallas Mavericks got unneurotic Tuesday and got Staples Center’s pulse pounding successful a regular-season tilt arsenic if determination was a postseason bid astatine stake.
Luka Doncic returned for Tuesday’s rematch to rekindle immoderate of the teams’ caller playoff battles, starring the Mavericks to a 112-104 overtime triumph that snapped their three-game losing skid without him.
The Clippers (10-8) weren’t without heroics of their own, including Paul George’s fading 3-pointer astatine the buzzer that punctuated regulation, sending the crippled to overtime tied 103-103 and sending a surge done the assemblage of 17,067.
But the Clippers couldn’t muster immoderate much fireworks, fizzling successful the other clip erstwhile they were outscored 9-1 – the lone constituent coming connected a method escaped propulsion taken by George.
Reggie Jackson had 31 points, his champion full arsenic a Clipper, connected 12-of-23 shooting.
And “in his 11th twelvemonth from North Philadelphia …” Marcus Morris Sr. heard his sanction announced among the Clippers starters for the archetypal clip successful 15 games, returning to the lineup and giving the Clippers 10 points and a mates of blocked shots successful his 31 minutes.
Dallas and the Clippers divided this two-game set, but: To beryllium continued with different two-game miniseries astatine Dallas successful February.
After missing 3 games with a sprained near genu and ankle – each losses, including an 87-91 decision to the Clippers connected Sunday – Doncic returned to enactment Tuesday, wearing a achromatic wrapper connected his genu and flexing his genu occasionally aboriginal on.
And past helium shook it off, shook disconnected immoderate cobwebs and got to work, finishing with 26 points 9 assists and 9 rebounds – contempt playing astir of the 2nd fractional and overtime with 4 fouls.
It took a fractional earlier either broadside truly got cooking Tuesday, but successful the 3rd quarter, nary 1 – not the Clippers nor the crowd, astatine whom Doncic shouted aft 1 of his buckets – could bash overmuch to dilatory the dynamic 22-year-old star, who scored 14 points successful the 3rd quarter.
After going 1 for 14 from heavy successful the archetypal half, the Mavericks (10-7) drilled 4 of their 10 second-half 3-point attempts during a pivotal 2½-minute agelong of the 4th fourth to physique a 100-92 vantage with 4:14 near successful regulation.
Jackson led each Clippers scorers and pulled down 10 rebounds successful 42 minutes. George changeable conscionable 7 for 23 from the tract and 1 for 6 from 3-point range, but helium added 9 rebounds and six assists.
Morris, the hard-nosed seasoned forward, had missed overmuch of the play truthful acold with a lingering genu injury. His past crippled earlier Tuesday was the Clippers’ 2nd of the season, a 120-114 nonaccomplishment to Memphis connected Oct. 23.
“Just getting Marcus backmost into it is large for us,” Clippers manager Tyronn Lue said earlier tip-off Tuesday. “We cognize helium tin sprout the basketball, gives america a station beingness arsenic well, truthful we’re conscionable precise excited to person him back.”
Morris looked noticeably much mobile Tuesday than helium had earlier the hiatus; helium had much rebounds successful the archetypal 3 minutes of Tuesday’s crippled (three) than helium had successful the 55 minutes helium played successful the archetypal 2 games (one) this season.
His 3-pointer with 5:12 near accounted for the Clippers’ lone points during the Mavericks’ 11-3 fourth-quarter tally that pushed their pb to 102-92 with 3:29 remaining.
Jackson and Luke Kennard deed 3-pointers to support the Clippers wrong striking distance, 102-97, with 59.3 seconds left.
Jackson’s stepback jumper trimmed the pb further and George’s 3-pointer sent it to overtime – the Clippers’ archetypal this season.
The Clippers enjoyed a uncommon accelerated commencement – bolting to an 11-3 pb earlier 4 minutes had transpired. They ne'er trailed successful the archetypal fractional and led by arsenic galore arsenic 11 points earlier going into the interruption starring 48-42 aft a stilted commencement that included 20 turnovers (11 by the Clippers) and 32 free-throw attempts (Dallas scored 17 of its archetypal 42 points astatine the enactment connected 19 foul shots).
Between the teams, determination were lone 5 made 3-pointers successful 30 attempts earlier halftime, with Dallas finishing 1 for 14 from agelong scope – connected a Doncic marque with 38 seconds to play.
Doncic picked up his 4th foul 46 seconds into the 3rd quarter. No matter, really: He rapidly reeled disconnected 10 points – including consecutive 3-pointers – to assistance Dallas instrumentality its archetypal lead, 57-56, with 8:36 to play successful the period.
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