San Antonio Spurs stun LA Clippers to go 3-0 up in NBA play-offs

Tony Parker and Tim Duncan inspire recovery after Spurs had trailed by 24 points at one stage, while Oklahoma Thunder go 3-1 up on LA Lakers.

LOS ANGELES, CA - MAY 19: Tony Parker #9 of the San Antonio Spurs shoots over DeAndre Jordan #6 and Blake Griffin #32 of the Los Angeles Clippers in Game Three of the Western Conference Semifinals in Show more

The top-seeded San Antonio Spurs pushed the Los Angeles Clippers to the brink of elimination from the NBA play-offs with an astonishing 96-86 comeback win in Game 3 on Saturday.

Trailing by 24 points early in the second quarter, the Spurs seized control through All-Stars Tony Parker and Tim Duncan to take a commanding 3-0 lead in their best-of-seven Western Conference semi-final series.

Guard Parker recorded 23 points and 10 assists while towering forward Duncan weighed in with 19 points and 13 rebounds as San Antonio extended their unbeaten run to 17 games, including seven in the play-offs.

Blake Griffin, despite playing with a left hip injury and a sprained right knee, led the way for the Clippers with 28 points and 16 rebounds but his heart-broken team paid the penalty for poor free shooting, making only 50 per cent from the stripe.

"To start the game, the Clippers played very aggressively and played great defence," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "On top of that, they made their shots, we didn't make ours and we were in transition a lot.

"We called some plays that helped us and Tony (Parker) ran the show really well. He knows what's going on out there and it just worked out for us tonight."

Thirteen-time All-Star forward Duncan applauded his team's composure under the early pressure piled on by the fifth-seeded Clippers.

"We understood that they were going to make a run early and we needed to sustain," he said. "We've been through enough of them (play-off games) to understand that's how it goes.

"It was great poise by our entire team. We were lucky enough in that second half to start making some shots and making some stops."

Elsewhere, Oklahoma City Thunder pushed the Los Angeles Lakers to the brink of play-off elimination with a 103-100 win in Game 4 on Saturday.

The second-seeded Thunder stormed from 11 points behind early in the final quarter to take a commanding 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven Western Conference semi-final series.

Forward Durant finished with 31 points and 13 rebounds while guard Russell Westbrook weighed in with 37 points as Oklahoma City stunned a sellout crowd at Staples Centre that had expected a home win.

Kobe Bryant led the way for the third-seeded Lakers with a game-high 38 points and eight rebounds but his team were ultimately let down by poor shooting and defence over the closing stretch.

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