Choking Clippers About to Be 1st Team Since 2006 to Lose Series After Leading 3-1
By Jason McIntyre
In the comeback nobody saw, the Clippers staved off elimination by magically turning an 89-70 third quarter deficit into a 119-107 victory. Don’t even try to understand how it happened, because none of it made sense – James Harden (5-of-20 FGs) sat on the bench, and Corey Brewer and Josh Smith (19 points on nine shots) went bananas.
I’m not really a +/- guy, but the Houston box score is downright silly. Every Rockets starter was + double figures … Harden was -21. Corey Brewer, who scored 19 points in 25 minutes, was +32.
The Clippers – at home! – were outscored in the 4th quarter 40-15. Hell, they led by 12 with 7:30 left! They clung to an 8-point lead with 6:30 left! A 17-0 run did them in. No coffee this morning for the Clippers. They aren’t closers.
So Houston heads home for Sunday’s Game 7, attempting to become the 1st team since the 2006 Phoenix Suns to rally from a 3-1 deficit to win the series. The Clippers are 2-point favorites.
Only eight teams have rallied from a 3-1 deficit to win the series, and here are the five most recent:
2006 Phoenix Suns: The 2nd seed trailed the Lakers 3-1 after Kobe hit a buzzer-beater in Game 4. The Suns rolled in Game 5 at home, then won Game 6 in overtime in LA despite 50 from Kobe. They coasted to a Game 7 blowout.
2003 Detroit Pistons: Tracy McGrady led the Magic to a stunning 3-1 lead, but the Pistons stormed back to easily win three straight.
1997 Miami Heat: Deserves an asterisk because of the Game 5 fight – PJ Brown tossed Charlie Ward at the 3:40 mark below, which led to Knicks suspensions in Games 6 and 7. The Heat survived.
1995 Houston Rockets: Phoenix led 3-1 but then Houston rallied for a Game 5 overtime road win, won handily at home in Game 6, and then Mario Elie his this unforgettable game-winning shot in Game 7 on the road.
1981 Boston Celtics: Has been called one of the greatest playoff series ever, but it didn’t look that way when the 76ers won at home in Game 4 to grab a 3-1 lead. Then, it got great: The Celtics won the next three games by a combined five points. In Game 5, the 76ers blew a 6-point lead with 1:51 left; in Game 7 the 76ers blew a 7-point lead with 4:34 left.