Thursday, 25 April 2019:
 | | JOE INGLES of the Utah Jazz controls the ball against the Golden State Warriors in Game Three of the Western Conference Semifinals during the 2017 NBA Playoffs at Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. | |
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An aggressive, desperate Los Angeles Clippers have denied Andrew Bogut's Golden State Warriors passage to the NBA's Western Conference semi-finals with another courageous win.
The Clippers surprised by defeating the Warriors 129-121 in Oakland on Wednesday to keep their first-round series alive.
The defending champion Warriors still lead 3-2 in the best-of-seven series, but Friday's game six is in LA.
Bogut said his Warriors, the top seeds in the West, had better match the intensity of the Clippers, the eighth seed, or the series could end up 3-3 and headed back to Oakland for the decider.
"We got a wake up call from them," Bogut told reporters.
"If we come out and just think we are going to roll over this team because they are an eighth seed, it doesn't work that way in the NBA Playoffs."
The Clippers made NBA history in game two, also in Oakland, when they beat the Warriors after erasing a 31-point deficit to achieve the biggest comeback in a playoff game.
The game five win was just as heroic.
The Clippers led for most of the contest despite the Warriors' All-Stars Kevin Durant scoring 45 points, Steph Curry 24 and Klay Thompson 22.
The Clippers were more aggressive, with the 185cm tall point guard Patrick Beverley scrapping for 14 rebounds and forward Montrezl Harrell coming off the bench for 24 points and inspirational defensive plays.
"It was defence," Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.
"We just did not defend."
The Warriors took the lead with three minutes to go but the Clippers, backed by Lou Williams' 33 points and 10 assists, refused to give in.
"It's a little mix of arrogance and hard work," Williams said of his team's personality, said.
Bogut appeared as though he would spark a game-winning rally early in the final period when in little over a minute he scored back-to-back baskets, drew an offensive foul and an offensive rebound.
The big Australian had six points and five rebounds.
The winner of the series will face a semi-final battle with James Harden's Houston Rockets.
The Rockets booked their place by knocking out Joe Ingles' Utah Jazz 100-93 in Houston on Wednesday for a 4-1 series victory.
Ingles had 11 points and continued his patchy shooting form missing eight of 12 field goal attempts and six of nine three-pointers.
Ingles did deliver nine assists and six rebounds.
The Jazz's game four hero Donovan Mitchell was cold, missing 18 of his 22 field goals and all nine three-point attempts.
Rockets' NBA MVP candidate Harden was also not at his best with 26 points.
Harden missed nine of his 12 three-pointers.
