PORTLAND, Ore. – — Paul George scored 27 points, James Harden had 19 points and 14 assists and the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Portland Trail Blazers 116-103 on Wednesday night.
The win gave the Clippers a one-game lead over the New Orleans Pelicans for the fourth seed in the Western Conference playoffs.
Scoot Henderson had 18 points and five assists for Portland and compatriot Kris Murray had a season-high 17 points.
The teams meet Friday night in Portland to complete a two-game series.
The Clippers took advantage of a 34-point third quarter, including 17 of Kawhi Leonard’s 24 points, to put the game out of reach.
After leading 60-50 at halftime, the Clippers took the lead. Portland cut the Clippers’ lead eight times early in the third quarter before Los Angeles pushed the lead to 72-58, forcing a Blazers timeout.
Portland turned the ball over after the timeout on consecutive possessions, including a 3-point play by Leonard, increasing the lead to 77-58.
“We have some really good people on the defensive end and we were able to put it all together tonight,” George said. “We played good defense, got stops, came out and got easy opportunities.
“Honestly, that’s when we click and we’re at our best – when we don’t have to face a loaded defense every possession.”
The Blazers committed seven turnovers in the third quarter, leading to 13 points for the Clippers.
“There were a lot of turnovers that led to points. That was the most important thing. That’s kind of all it is,” Murray said of Portland’s third-quarter struggles.
Amir Coffey’s 3-point basket pushed the lead to 84-60, forcing another Portland timeout.
“We had the idea of making another run,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said of the Clippers’ ability to extend their lead. “Even if they called a timeout to stop the race, let’s be professional. I give our guys credit – tonight they did it.
The Clippers, whose largest lead was 27, outscored the Trail Blazers 34-20 in the third quarter.
Los Angeles took a 47-35 lead midway through the second quarter. Harden made consecutive three-pointers to force a Blazers timeout with 6:04 left in the half.
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