DALLAS — James Harden delivered a vintage performance to lead the Clippers to their first win since Halloween.
Harden scored four of his 10 overtime points in the second extra period and finished with season highs of 41 points and 14 rebounds, along with 11 assists, as the Clippers beat the Dallas Mavericks, 133-127, in an NBA Cup group play game on Friday night.
Ivica Zubac added a season-high 27 points and 11 rebounds as the Clippers (4-8) snapped their six-game losing streak and improved to 2-0 in NBA Cup West Group B.
Harden’s 82nd career triple-double was his eighth as a Clipper, breaking a tie with Lamar Odom and Blake Griffin for the franchise record. The future Hall of Famer shot 13 for 25 from the field (6 for 12 from 3-point range) and 9 for 11 from the free-throw line.
Naji Marshall, making his first start of the season, and D’Angelo Russell, coming off the bench, scored 28 points apiece to lead the Mavericks (3-10), who are 0-2 in group play. Dallas has lost three straight games and seven of its last eight.
Harden, who had two 3-pointers in the first OT, followed two made free throws with a driving basket to give the Clippers a 129-125 lead with 3:07 left in the second OT. The Clippers led 133-127 with 2:20 to go when Russell committed two of his seven turnovers over the next minute.
A layup by Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg with 20 seconds left in the first overtime tied the score at 123-123. It appeared the Clippers took a 125-123 lead with 1.4 seconds left in the first overtime when Dallas’ Daniel Gafford was called for goaltending on a Harden shot, but video review reversed the call.
A layup by Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg with 20 seconds left in the first overtime tied the game at 123-123, and the game headed to double overtime after Harden’s floater was blocked with a second left.
Bogdan Bogdanovic made five 3-point shots and scored 21 points – both season highs – off the bench for the Clippers, who led by 12 early in the fourth quarter.
Harden capped an 18-2 run with consecutive 3-pointers to give the Clippers a 52-42 lead with 3:45 left in the first half.
Russell spearheaded the Mavericks’ rally in the final minutes of regulation. He scored eight straight Dallas points during a 17-6 run, including a layup with 52.4 seconds left that tied the game at 114-114 and sent the game to overtime.
Flagg finished with 16 points, Klay Thompson scored 13, and Gafford and Max Christie had 10 apiece for Dallas.
Dereck Lively II, who missed the previous nine games with a sprained right knee, returned to the Mavericks’ short-handed frontcourt. Lively, coming off the bench on a minutes restriction, had four points – all in the fourth quarter – and five rebounds. Dallas played without big men Anthony Davis (eighth consecutive game missed with a strained left calf) and P.J. Washington Jr. (left shoulder strained in Dallas’ previous game).
The Clippers played their second game since the news that veteran guard Bradley Beal is lost for the season with a fractured hip. Clippers star Kawhi Leonard missed his sixth consecutive game with a sprained ankle.
UP NEXT
The Clippers play at Boston on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. PT.