Warriors eliminate Clippers
Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors ended the Los Angeles Clippers’ season in the play-in, officially knocking the Clippers out of postseason contention. (sports.yahoo.com). The result settles a key West play-in slot and locks in first-round seeding that appears across recent bracket reports. (cbssports.com)
Golden State beat the Los Angeles Clippers 126-121 on Wednesday night, ending the Clippers’ season in the Western Conference play-in tournament. (nba.com) Stephen Curry scored 35 points, including 27 in the second half, and his seventh three-pointer broke a tie with 50.4 seconds left at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, California. (nba.com) The Warriors erased a 13-point fourth-quarter deficit, closed on a 16-6 run, and got four three-pointers from Al Horford in the comeback. (nba.com) Because this was the No. 9 versus No. 10 West play-in game, the loss eliminated the Clippers immediately and kept Golden State alive for one more game. The National Basketball Association schedule lists Los Angeles as eliminated and shows Golden State playing Phoenix on Friday, April 17, for the No. 8 seed. (nba.com) That result also clarified the Western Conference bracket already taking shape elsewhere: Houston opens against the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday, April 18, and Portland opens against San Antonio on Sunday, April 19, while the final West spot remains open until Golden State plays Phoenix. (nba.com) Golden State entered the night as the No. 10 seed after a 37-45 regular season, so the Warriors needed two straight play-in wins to reach the playoffs. The first came Wednesday; the second must come Friday on the road against the Suns. (nba.com; espn.com) For the Clippers, the loss ended a 42-40 season and left them out of the playoffs for the first time since 2022, despite extending their run of winning seasons to 15. Kawhi Leonard scored 21 points, Bennedict Mathurin led Los Angeles with 23, and Darius Garland added 21 points with eight assists. (nba.com) The Warriors now head to Phoenix with Curry back from a 27-game absence caused by a knee injury, and one win from a first-round series against Oklahoma City on Sunday, April 19. (nba.com; nba.com)
