Nuggets, Warriors score crucial wins in NBA Playoffs

LOS ANGELES, United States — The Denver Nuggets leveled their Western Conference series with a stunning 101-99 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers sealed by Aaron Gordon's put-back dunk at the final buzzer on Sunday (Manila time). 

Three-time NBA Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic scored 36 points with 21 rebounds and eight assists for the Nuggets, who led by 22 early in the fourth quarter.

The Clippers, led by 24 points from Kawhi Leonard and 22 from Norman Powell, surged back to take their first lead of the game, 97-96, on Bogdan Bogdanovic's reverse layup with 1:11 to play.

Jokic spun through traffic for a basket that put Denver back on top, but Ivica Zubac tipped in a basket to tie it at 99-99.

With little more than a second remaining Jokic unleashed a high-arching three-point attempt that missed, Gordon nabbing the rebound and thrusting the ball in the hoop for a game winner that required an agonizingly lengthy video review before officials confirmed he had, indeed, beaten the buzzer.

"That's a crazy game, man, crazy game," Gordon said.

In San Francisco, Stephen Curry shook off a slow start to score 36 points with seven rebounds and nine assists as Golden State pulled away late for a 104-93 victory over the Houston Rockets that put the Warriors up 2-1 in their series.

The Rockets had a one-point lead with less than six minutes remaining in the bruising back-and-forth battle that featured 18 lead changes.

Gary Payton II then scored four straight baskets for the Warriors and fed Curry for a three-pointer that gave the Warriors a 95-86 lead.

The hard-fought victory came without star forward Jimmy Butler, who suffered a pelvic contusion in a hard fall in Game 2.