NBA Playoffs: The Suns are still red-hot after a buzzer-beating win over the Clippers in Game 2
Phoenix, Arizona - The Phoenix Suns held on at home for their ninth-straight playoff win to beat the Clippers and take a two-game series lead in the Western Conference semifinals.
Cameron Payne (26), Devin Booker, and the Suns eked out a dramatic 104-103 win against the Clippers on Tuesday night and are now halfway to the NBA finals. They take their 2-0 lead on the road as the series now moves to LA for games three and four.
The game was a hard-fought battle in which the Clippers could’ve escaped with the win and tie the series. Both teams were going back and forth, with several lead changes, until the Clippers had a one-point lead with under ten seconds to go in regulation. Paul George missed two free throws that would’ve sealed the game for LA, but opened the door for Phoenix to take the victory thanks to a last-second alley-oop by Deandre Ayton. The roar of the home crowd was something else, as teammates and coaches streamed onto the floor.
Despite a strong game led by Payne’s 29 points, while Ayton and Booker chipped in with 24 and 20, respectively, the Suns looked more like a team that actually needed their superstar point guard Chris Paul, who is still out of Phoenix’s lineup due to the league’s Covid-19 health and safety protocol.
It was definitely a tougher game than the first one for the Suns. The Clippers seemed determined to bounce back after the Game 1 loss, despite missing their top man Kawhi Leonard, who is still nursing a bad knee. In his absence, George once again led the Clippers with 26 points, but those two missed free throws overshadowed his performance.
The real battle in game two though was in the paint. The Suns torched their opponents with 60 points around the basket, doubling up LA’s total. However, the Clippers kept things constantly close with excellent shooting from long-range, hitting 13 threes to Phoenix’s six.
Even though the Clippers lost this one, their push against the Suns is something to build on as they have another chance to get back into this series.
The Clippers have been in this position twice before during this postseason
The Clippers might want to rely on past trends. In both the first and second rounds of these playoffs, they dropped the first two games, only to then end up winning each series. Not to mention the fact that they just eliminated the Utah Jazz, the NBA’s overall top seed, in the semifinals.
But it's equally fair to point out that the Suns just swept the Nuggets and the league’s MVP in their previous round.
Game three of the Western Conference finals is on Thursday, from Los Angeles.
Cover photo: IMAGO / ZUMA Press