George, Leonard lead Clippers to comeback win, 2-1 series lead vs. Nuggets

Sept. 8 (UPI) -- Kawhi Leonard and Paul George united to spark a fourth-quarter comeback and lead the Los Angeles Clippers to a 113-107 win over the Denver Nuggets in Game 3 of a Western Conference semifinals series.

George scored 32 points to help the Clippers take a 3-2 lead in the series Monday at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex inside the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Fla.

Leonard was all over the court and filled the box score with 23 points, 14 rebounds, six assists and two blocks.

"This game is always predicated on whoever plays defense first, wins," George told reporters. "I thought we incorporated that and put this game away."

George scored 10 points in the first 12 minutes to lead the Clippers to a 33-32 edge entering the second quarter. The Nuggets responded with a 9-2 run midway through the second quarter for a 55-43 lead. The Clippers answered to cut the Nuggets lead to 59-57 at the end of the quarter.

The Nuggets pushed their lead back to 10 points in the third quarter, but the Clippers fought back and trailed 88-84 at the end of the frame. Denver then went on a 7-0 run at the start of the final frame and took a 97-90 lead with 8:29 remaining before the Clippers' final response. Los Angeles used a 14-4 run to take a 104-101 lead with 4:27 remaining and never lost the advantage.

"We take pride in our defense and we wanted to win," Leonard said. "We had to execute on the offense end with no turnovers and we were able to get it done."

Nikola Jokic tied George with a game-high 32 points for the Nuggets. Jokic also had 12 rebounds and eight assists in the loss. Michael Porter Jr. scored 18 points and had 10 rebounds off the bench for Denver. Jamal Murray had 14 points, nine assists and four rebounds for the Nuggets.

"They had really aggressive defense in the fourth quarter," Jokic said. "We just needed to use that against them, [but didn't].

Marcus Morris had 12 points for the Clippers. Montrezl Harrell and Lou Williams scored 11 and 10 points, respectively, off the Clippers bench.

The Clippers and Nuggets clash in Game 4 at 9 p.m. EDT Wednesday in Orlando. The winner of the best-of-seven series will face the Los Angeles Lakers or Houston Rockets in the Western Conference finals.

Moments from LeBron James' career

St. Vincent-St. Mary High School senior LeBron James (L) drives around a Zanesvuille defender in Akron, Ohio, on February 14, 2003. James is expected to be the No. 1 pick in the NBA draft. A couple months later, the Cleveland Cavaliers coach was suspended because James worked out with the team before he graduated from high school. Photo by Tom Cammett/UPI | License Photo

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