Dwight Howard on Clippers late Game 7 surge: 'Man, we can't let them pull an us on us'

The Houston Rockets fought back from the brink of elimination to advance to the Western Conference Finals with their 113-100 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers.

However, it was not completely smooth sailing for the Rockets on Sunday. Houston's victory was threatened by the Clippers' last-quarter resurgence, which saw L.A. whittle a 20-point lead down to come within eight points of their opponent with 2:05 left in the game.

The Rockets found themselves on the opposite side of a potential come-from-behind victory, a type of win they know very well. Houston's Game 6 win over the Clippers was just that type, with the Rockets overcoming a 19-point deficit and taking the lead in the fourth quarter to force Game 7. That was a resurgence that Doc Rivers told the media after his team's elimination that they would be thinking about "for a long time."

Dwight Howard, who finished the night with 16 points, 15 rebounds, two assists, and two steals, knew that if L.A. got any closer, it would be the end of Houston's road to the Conference Finals.

"They cut the lead and I was like, 'Man, we can't let them pull an us on us,' Howard said in the post-victory press conference.

His teammates were obviously all on the same wavelength. Shooting forward Trevor Ariza sunk a 3-pointer from 24-feet out, and James Harden, Ariza, and Corey Brewer's work at the charity stripe helped Houston hold on for a victory.