Lou Williams on Wednesday sent the same roaring, adoring crowd that cheered Kevin Durant’s milestone to the exits several minutes before the final buzzer.
Durant was brilliant, and Williams even better.
Williams racked up 27 of his career-high 50 points in the third quarter as the undermanned Los Angeles Clippers beat the Golden State Warriors for the first time in more than three years with a 125-106 win that spoiled a milestone night for Durant.
Williams shot 16 for 27 with a career-best eight three-pointers and made all 10 of his free throws.
“He ordered 50-piece nuggets on us tonight,” Durant said. “Lou got it going.”
Durant became the 44th player in NBA history to score 20,000 career points, finishing with 40 as the Warriors had their five-game winning streak snapped along with a 12-game unbeaten stretch in the Clippers rivalry.
Durant reached the milestone on a pull-up jumper from the left wing at the 1 minute, 41 second mark of the second quarter. The Warriors announced his accomplishment on the main scoreboard and Durant received a standing ovation, shaking his head in acknowledgment while still very much in game mode.
By late in the fourth quarter, that crowd was making its way for the exits with the game out of reach.
The NBA Finals Most Valuable Player returned from a three-game absence due to a strained right calf and scored 25 points in the first half against the Clippers — Durant’s biggest half of the season and the exact number he needed for 20,000.
Durant, who had a four-point play during the second quarter on the way to 14 points in the period, is at 29 the second-youngest player behind LeBron James and first to reach the 20,000 mark as a member of the Warriors.
He shot 14 for 18, including six of seven from deep, while Zaza Pachulia added 12 points on a night when the Warriors were without their starting backcourt.
Stephen Curry re-sprained his right ankle in the morning and Klay Thompson was out for rest that had been previously scheduled.
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Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter is being criminally investigated by the IRS, and the attorney for his alleged bookmaker said Thursday that the ex-Los Angeles Dodgers employee placed bets on international soccer — but not baseball. The IRS confirmed Thursday that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara and Mathew Bowyer, the alleged illegal bookmaker, are under criminal investigation through the agency’s Los Angeles Field Office. IRS Criminal Investigation spokesperson Scott Villiard said he could not provide additional details. Mizuhara, 39, was fired by the Dodgers on Wednesday following reports from the Los Angeles Times and ESPN about his alleged ties to an illegal bookmaker and debts well
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