The Houston Rockets have secured their place in the Western Conference finals by defeating the Los Angeles Clippers in game seven of their series.
The home side took control of the game in the first quarter as James Harden made two three-pointers and Terrence Jones notched two late scores to hand them a 28-21 lead.
Dwight Howard extended the Rockets' advantage at the start of the second quarter, which brought the Clippers to life as Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan began to find their rhythm around the court.
However, Howard made a two-pointer just before the close of the half to give the home side a 10-point lead at the break.
The Clippers responded in the third quarter to reduce the deficit to three points as Jordan, Paul and Blake Griffin all notched scores, including a 26-foot three-pointer from Paul.
Harden returned to form and he along with Trevor Ariza began to take the game away from Los Angeles with composed shots, which handed them a 17-point lead at the end of the third quarter.
The Clippers tried to rally in the fourth through Paul, but Harden and Ariza proved once again too much to handle for Doc Rivers's side's defense as the Rockets sealed a 113-100 victory.
Houston reached the conference finals for the first time since 1997 and became the ninth team in NBA history to overturn a 3-1 deficit to win a playoff series.
The Rockets will play the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference finals.
Simon Sinclair
