Clippers overcome 25-point deficit to win Game 6, advance to conference finals
The Los Angeles Clippers are headed to the Western Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history.
On the back of second-year wing Terance Mann and former Oklahoma City Thunder players Reggie Jackson and Paul George, the Clippers overcame a 25-point deficit to take down the Utah Jazz in Game 6 and clinch the playoff series.
Mann was unbelievable, scoring 39 points on 15-for-21 shooting and making seven 3-pointers.
He had never scored 30 points in a game and broke 20 only four times in his career prior to Friday night. As a rookie, Mann scored a total of 99 points before earning a role this season.
Jackson has emerged in these playoffs as a threat, breaking 20 points for the third time in this series. He finished the game with 27 points and 10 assists, his first double-double since February 12, 2020.
The guard shot 10-for-16 from the field and had three steals.
George had 28 points, nine rebounds and seven assists while shooting 10-for-24 from the field. He has been phenomenal this series, averaging 29 points, 9.2 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game while shooting 44.1% from the field and 41.6% from 3.
The Clippers trailed by 25 points before embarking on a comeback in which they put together separate runs of 11-0 and 17-0 in the third quarter to get back into it.
Los Angeles went 14-for-19 from 3 in the second half, including a pair late in the fourth quarter by Patrick Beverley, and outscored Utah 81-47 over those 24 minutes of play.
The Clippers overcame Donovan Mitchell’s 39 points and the enormous deficit to get the win.
With the victory, Los Angeles advances to the Western Conference Finals to face off against the Phoenix Suns. This this is the Clippers’ first ever appearance in the conference championships and the Suns’ first since 2010. Los Angeles has never been to the NBA Finals, while the Suns have not been there since 1993.
