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Five takeaways from Clippers’ 122-120 win over the Denver Nuggets

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A cadre of Clippers players lifted the team to a stirring road win on Tuesday. Here’s what we learned from the Clippers’ 122-120 victory over the Denver Nuggets.

1. It was being hailed at the Boban Effect.

Boban Marjanovic was the man of the hour for the Clippers.

Marjanovic scored a season-high 18 points on five-of-eight shooting. He had six rebounds, one assist, one blocked shot, two steals and was a plus-27 in the plus-minus category.

He did all that in just 15 minutes, 11 seconds, with his time on the court turning the game around for the Clippers.

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Marjanovic checked into the game with the Clippers down by their biggest deficit of the game, 82-63, with 4:24 left in the third quarter.

He did not take a seat until there were 59 seconds left in the game. And by that time, the Clippers had opened a five-point lead, having outscored the Nuggets 55-31 with Marjanovic on the court.

He became one of nine players in NBA history to score at least 18 points in 15 minutes or less without attempting a three-pointer. He was the first since he accomplished the feat himself on March 23, 2016, while playing for San Antonio.

He’s the only player in league history with more than one such game.

Clippers center Boban Marjanovic fights for the ball against Denver center Nikola Jokic on Feb. 27.
(David Zalubowski / Associated Press )

2. Montrezl Harrell played with his usual energy and zest, becoming one of the spark plugs for the Clippers off the bench.

Harrell had 15 points on seven-for-10 shooting, with four rebounds, three assists and one blocked shot.

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3. Seemingly every time Tyrone Wallace steps on the court, he makes a solid case for the Clippers to sign him.

Wallace is on a two-way contract to play for the Clippers and their NBA development league team, the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario.

The Clippers can sign him to a 10-day contract, convert his two-way deal into a contract for the rest of the season or leave him on the ACC team. On Wednesday morning, the Clippers transferred Wallace back to the ACC.

But his 16 points and five assists against the Nuggets showed why Wallace belongs in the NBA full time.

4. The Clippers’ bench scored a season-high 74 points. It was the most points by their reserve unit since the substitutes had 74 points against the Lakers on Dec. 30, 2000.

5. The Clippers had 19 turnovers, but just four in the fourth quarter.

They had seven in the second quarter when the Nuggets built a lead, and six more in the third when the Nuggets constructed a 19-point lead.

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But the Clippers took good care of the basketball when the game mattered the most in the final quarter.

broderick.turner@latimes.com

Twitter: @BA_Turner

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