Harden has 28 points and eight assists in a bounce-back performance, Kawhi Leonard scores 27 and the Clippers hold on for a 111-105 win to set up a winner-take-all showdown Saturday in Denver.

Small Game James Harden helped the Nuggets take a 3-2 series advantage entering Thursday night. It matches his history of postseason fades as his career average sinks from 23.3 to 20.8 points in Games 5-7 in a series.

This same scenario hit Denver a year ago with Minnesota, but the Nuggets are looking for a different outcome this time.