Too much James Harden early, good Clippers defense late forces Game 7 vs. Nuggets with 111-105 win

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Los Angeles faced a win-or-Cancun Game 6 at home Thursday for two reasons. One, the Denver defense had taken James Harden out of the series (his shot attempts had decreased every game, from 22 in the opener to nine in the Game 5 loss). Two, the Clippers’ defense had dulled over the course of the series, particularly in Game 5.

Los Angeles will play in Game 7 on Saturday because it cleaned up those two problems.

Harden came out in attack mode, getting downhill, forcing the Nuggets into rotation, scoring 21 points in the first half, and making smart passes. The Clippers opened up the floor for Harden and their other scorers by running more guard/guard pick-and-roll (keeping bigs off him) and using more Nicolas Batum to keep the floor spaced.

“I thought James did a great job of setting the tone early, scoring the basketball, getting downhill, making the right play,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. “Norman made some big shots at the end, and Kawhi just kind of steady throughout the game. But I thought those three guys really stepped up, came to play.”

The Clippers, led by Ivica Zubac with help from Batum, also held Nikola Jokic in relative check and wore him down as the game went on — the three-time MVP scored 5 points on 2-of-9 shooting in the second half.

All of that saw the Clippers hang on for a 111-105 win to force a Game 7 in Denver on Saturday.

If that thought of a Game 7 after losing a Game 6 on the road brings nightmares to Nuggets fans, it’s because this scenario played out a year ago. Denver led Minnesota by 20 two minutes into the second half but fatigue set in and the Nuggets were outscored 60-32 over the rest of the half, lost and were eliminated.

“I don’t personally think about the past,” Jokic said of that game. “I think it’s a little one year behind. I think I’m a better player. I think my teammates are better players.”

By Game 7 there are no secrets, no strategic surprises left, it’s more about execution. However, one strategy that we will see more of is Batum — he could even start for Kris Dunn (he did in the second half of Game 6).

“I know why I’m playing: Space the floor, shoot 3s, and on defense make plays. That’s my job,” Batum said.

For Denver, their attack was more balanced: Jokic finished with 25, Jamal Murray 21, Aaron Gordon 19 and Russell Westbrook off the bench with 14.

That balance and offense will be put to the test in Game 7, where focus and attention to detail can be hard to come by under all that pressure.

However, that pressure is what makes Game 7s so much fun,