The Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA) extended their winning streak to two games as Nikola Jokic recorded his ninth triple-double of the season to defeat the hapless Denver Nuggets.The Clippers defeated the Nuggets 111-102 on Sunday (Jan. 7) in their 2023-2024 NBA regular season home opener at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, Calif.The Clippers improved to 10-10, good for ninth place in the Western Conference, while Denver remained in third place with a 14-8 record.The Clippers lost their early momentum as Denver hit their first four shots of the first quarter, all 3-pointers, and quickly racked up points.After regrouping, the Clippers fought back with a whopping 40 points in the second quarter.

After tying the game midway through the second quarter on a big shot by Kobe Bryant, the Clippers scored 11 straight points, led by a Paul George three-pointer, to pull away.Down 61-57 at halftime, the Clippers gave the lead back to Denver in the third quarter, but in the fourth quarter, back-to-back George three-pointers cracked the rim and Kawhi Leonard provided the supporting firepower to seal the game.The Clippers were led by George with 25 points and eight rebounds and James Harden with 20 points and 11 assists.Denver was led by Jokic with 25 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists for his ninth triple-double of the season, 스포츠토토존 but it was overshadowed by the team’s loss.