Devin Booker (26) and Kevin Durant (34) put the Phoenix Suns (hereafter Phoenix) into the second round of the playoffs.
Phoenix held on the morning of the 26th (Korean time) at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona, USA, in the 5th round of the 2022-23 season Western Conference playoffs, 136-130, LA Clippers (hereafter Clippers) by 6 points ) was suppressed.
Phoenix,크크크벳 who advanced to the second round of the playoffs with a victory on the day, Booker scored 47 points, 8 rebounds, 10 assists and 2 steals, including 4 3-pointers, Durant scored 31 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists, including 4 3-pointers, and Deandre Ayton scored 21 points and 11 points. He played an active part with 3 rebounds and 3 assists. Chris Paul recorded 15 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists.
The Clippers, who finished this season, struggled with Norman Powell with 27 points and 3 assists, Mason Plumlee with 20 points and 10 rebounds (7OBR) and 3 assists, and Nicholas Batum with 19 points and 6 rebounds, including 5 3-pointers. Russell Westbrook had 14 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists and 5 turnovers.
The Clippers couldn’t control Phoenix’s midrange jumper from Booker-Durant-Ayton-Paul.
It was the Clippers who took the lead first. After a fierce first quarter, the Clippers entered the second quarter and took the lead with Bonds Highland’s tempo push. And veteran players like Batum also started scoring. Phoenix made the points on the chase with Booker and Durant’s scorer, but allowed Powell to score five points in a row and Terrence Man to make a fast-breaking three-pointer. As a result, the Clippers finished the first half with a 70-61, 9-point lead.
Then Phoenix entered the third quarter and showed amazing firepower, scoring 50 points in that quarter alone. Leading Phoenix’s offense were Booker, Durant and Paul. First, Booker started with 5 points in a row, and Paul also increased the excitement with a 3-point shot. Then, Booker and Durant took turns breaking down the Clippers’ defense. In particular, Booker boasted a peak shot feeling by putting up to 3 running pull-ups. Amid the performance of the three, Phoenix entered the fourth quarter with a 111-94, 17-point lead.
The Clippers veterans are starting to energize. Most of all, Fulham Lee helped Batum’s 3-point shot, then Andwon play, broke Damian Lee’s pass, and produced points to pursue with a fast dunk and breakthrough score. Paul and Durant barely gave up the lead as they put in midrange jumpers one by one. Powell passed a cut-in pass to Westbrook and scored through a breakthrough, and Batum also succeeded in narrowing the score by adding a 3-point shot.
Booker, who appeared at some point, put in a 3-point shot and handed a perfect pass to Ayton, writing up 10 assists. However, when the Clippers did not show their intention to give up with Batum’s fast-paced running 3-point shot, Powell’s running 3-point shot and Man’s corner 3-point shot burst in succession. And again Batum succeeded in a 3-point shot, and the Clippers enjoyed a 12-0 cool run. In response, Phoenix tried to break the Clippers’ flow with free throws, but continued to flow one free throw at a time.
The Clippers had a chance to turn around as even Booker, whom they trusted, committed a turnover, but Powell stunned the ball and gave Durant a fast-running layup. Afterwards, Durant connected Westbrook’s out-of-bounce turnover to a wedge free throw score. With this, Phoenix won the Clippers by 136-130, 6 points.