April 18, 2017

Blake Griffin led the Clippers with 24 points while DeAndre Jordan added 17 points and 15 rebounds, as the Clippers defeated the Jazz 99-91 at Staples Center.  The best-of-seven series is now tied 1-1, and will head back to Utah for the next two games.

Chris Paul scored 21 points and added 10 assists, and the Clips pounded the Jazz in the paint, outscoring them 60-38.

The Jazz were led by Gordon Hayward, who scored 20 points in the loss.  Joe Johnson provided 13 points off the bench.  The Jazz played without Rudy Gobert, who sat out with a hyperextended knee.

LA jumped out to a 12-point lead after the 1st quarter.  After a DeAndre Jordan dunk off a lob pass from Jamal Crawford, the Clips had a 9-point lead at halftime.

“We got into movement. We went downhill a lot more,’’ said Doc Rivers. “Every time they made a run, we pushed the ball up the floor.”

Both teams scored 28 points in the 3rd quarter, but the closest the Jazz would come to take the lead was a 3-point deficit in the period.  The Clippers took a 79-70 lead into the 4th quarter.

In the 4th quarter, the Jazz got within 6 points of the Clippers, but LA answered.  Luc Richard Mbah a Moute pull down an offensive rebound that led to the Griffin’s three-pointer.  That put the game away.

“They raised their level tonight,” said Jazz Coach Quin Snyder. “They played with an intensity from the beginning of the game, It was impressive. That’s who they are.”

“This is what we should do,” Clippers coach Doc Rivers said afterward.

Game 3 of the series will be Friday night in Utah against the Jazz.