Westbrook stings Clips in clutch as Nuggets take Game 1 in OT - ESPN

DENVER — The LA Clippers aren't the first team that has sagged off Russell Westbrook defensively, daring him to try to beat them instead of three-time MVP Nikola Jokic.

The Clippers know Westbrook's aggression and confidence well from his stint with them the previous two seasons. So in Saturday's Game 1 against the Denver Nuggets, they took that strategy to the extreme — and Westbrook made them pay.

Westbrook hit a huge 3-pointer at the end of regulation in Denver's 112-110 overtime victory over the Clippers at Ball Arena and made several key defensive plays against his former team to help the Nuggets steal the first game of their Western Conference playoff series — a game in which they trailed by as many as 15 points.

«Yeah, yeah,» Westbrook said when asked if he recognized that his former team had been daring him to beat it by the way it defended him.

According to ESPN Research, the Clippers gave Westbrook an average separation of 9.6 feet when he was taking 3-pointers in Game 1. That's the most separation he has gotten on 3-pointers in a playoff game when taking at least five attempts since player tracking began in 2013-14, according to Genius IQ.

«We can talk about that more when we take care of business,» Westbrook said.

Westbrook finished with 15 points on 5-for-17 shooting, but 10 of those points came in the fourth quarter and overtime. His putback with 3:37 to go in regulation, one of his four offensive rebounds on the night, gave the Nuggets their first lead at 93-92.

Westbrook also made the defensive play of the game at the end of overtime as he deflected Nicolas Batum's inbounds pass to James Harden with 10 seconds remaining and forced a turnover.

«I know that play,» Westbrook said, referring to his time with