The Los Angeles Clippers lost a heartbreaker Monday night when they fell to the Philadelphia 76ers 110-108 for their 10th loss of the season.

The first quarter was a strong showing for the Clippers and the middle of the game was an even exchange by the two teams, but a fourth quarter collapse that saw the Clippers outscored by 12 to put the game out of reach.

In a game that can be decided by one shot, every single moment goes under the microscope. As the final seconds wound down in this heartbreaker, there was an incident that was worthy of examination. With 6.3 seconds left in the game, Clippers star and leading scorer James Harden had the ball and went up for a three-point jumper that would have given Los Angeles the edge.

A Controversial Call

When Harden went up to shoot, 76ers guard Quentin Grimes came crashing in to block Harden's shot and smacked down on Harden's elbow. The shot missed and just a few seconds later the game ended in Philadelphia's favor. Despite the contact between Harden and Grimes, no foul was called. 

"I thought it was a foul, he goes right for my elbow, but I had another opportunity too... they kind of switched it up a little bit, so it kind of threw us off, kind of took my aggressiveness away a little bit. But, I thought I had a good opportunity there," Harden said (via Law Murray of The Athletic). 

Due to the close nature of the game, a Pool Report session was called after the game for the game's head referee Curtis Blair to explain the no-call during what became the game deciding play. 

When asked about the no call, Blair explained that, "During live play, it was deemed that Grimes legally contested Harden's three-point shot," (via Joey Linn of Sports Illustrated).

While it's certainly a brief explanation, it is the official one. 

From Grimes' side, he believes that he was playing the necessary defense. When it comes to the legality of the play, he doesn't consider that up to his judgement.

"Everybody knows where the ball is going, so I tried to make it as tough as possible," Grimes said (via PHLY Sixers).  "I might have fouled him, might have not, but that's not my call."

Heading into Monday's game, the Clippers had finally started to generate some momentum with two straight wins, but the heartbreaker they suffered against Philadelphia represents yet another setback in what's been a trying season.