April 21, 2017

Chris Paul put the Clippers on his back in the 4th quarter, scoring 9 straight points during one stretch as LA defeated Utah 111-106 in game 3 of their 1st round playoff series.  The Clippers now have a 2-1 lead in the series.

Paul finished the game with 34 points, 10 assists, and 7 rebounds for the Clips.  However, they also lost Blake Griffin, who left the game in the 1st half after bruising his right big toe.  The injury took place late in the 2nd quarter after Griffin scored on a fast break.  He went to the locker room shortly after, undergoing X-rays that came back negative.  He’ll be evaluated for further tests.

DeAndre Jordan had 17 points and 13 rebounds, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute had a playoff career-high 15 points, and Jamal Crawford finished with 9 points.

Gordon Hayward led the Jazz with a playoff career-high 40 points.  However, the Jazz went scoreless for 6:06 of the 4th quarter, which allowed the Clippers to go on a 15-0 run.

With 4 minutes left, Paul nailed a 3-pointer to give the Clippers a 97-96 lead, their first lead since the 1st quarter of the game.

At the 3:23 mark, Paul went behind his back and eluded two Jazz defenders for a driving layup to make it 99-96 Clippers.  That forced Utah to call a timeout to regroup.

“He has an amazing will,” Doc Rivers said. “He’s just a tough guy. He’s stubborn in a very, very positive way. All the great ones have that in them. They’re stubborn like they aren’t going to lose.”

“I’m just always looking at the scoreboard trying to manage the game,” Paul said. “I was just trying to pick my spots. That’s a good team over there. They stick to their principles.

Game 4 will be on Sunday in Utah.  The Clippers will try to take a 3-1 lead in the series.  They’ll be awaiting word on the severity of Griffin’s injury between now and then.  Meanwhile, the Jazz will be awaiting word on whether center Rudy Gobert will return to their lineup.

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.

April 15, 2017

Joe Johnson hit a game-winning runner that bounced into the hoop to give the Utah Jazz a 97-95 victory over the Clippers in Game 1 of their 1st round series at Staples Center on Saturday night.  Utah has a 1-0 lead in the best of seven series.

“I just wanted to get as close as I could to the basket, and it was a good thing it went down,” Johnson said.

Johnson scored 21 points on the night off the bench to lead the Jazz.  The Clippers were led by Blake Griffin, who scored 26 points and pulled down 7 rebounds.  Chris Paul had 25 points, 11 assists, and 7 rebounds.

Paul banked in a floater with 13 seconds left in the 4th quarter to  tie the game at 95-95.  The Jazz didn’t call a timeout, and went the other way with a chance to win the game.  The left Johnson isolated against Jamal Crawford, who drove the lane for the game-winner.

“We’ve got to be better,” Paul said.  “They played harder, they were more physical.”

The Jazz lost starting center Rudy Gobert just 18 seconds into the game, when he bumped knees with Luc Richard Mbah a Moute.  Gobert left the game after being helped into the locker room.  The good news for the Jazz is that an MRI exam showed no structural damage to the knee, and Gobert was diagnosed with a hyperextension.

Utah outscored the Clippers 16-10 to open the third, before Crawford’s jumper put the Clips ahead 70-69.  Gordon Hayward, who finished the game with 19 points, scored 6 straight points to give the Jazz a 74-70 lead heading into the 4th quarter.

In the first half neither team led by more than 6 points.  The Jazz went on a 14-2 run in the 2nd quarter to take their own 6-point lead.  However, the Clips answered with a 14-8 spurt of their own.

The real difference in the game was the benches.  The Clippers got just 20 points from their bench, and only 8 from Jamal Crawford.  The Jazz on the other hand, received 46 points from their reserves.

Now the Clips will have to fight to regain home court advantage.  “We fought until the end of the year to get it, and now we’ve given it right back,” Clippers coach Doc Rivers said.

Game 2 will be on Tuesday night at Staples Center, where the Clips will try to even the series before heading to Utah.

April 12, 2017

The Clippers secured home court advantage on Wednesday night with a 115-95 win over Sacramento in the final regular season contest.

LA needed to win after the Jazz defeated the Spurs at home.  The Clippers and Jazz will open the 1st round of the playoffs at Staples Center on Saturday night.  The Clips won the season series 3-1, and as a result, won the tie-breaker over the Jazz in the standings.

“I wanted to win the game,” Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. “I thought it was good for our guys to win. But honestly, home court was still more important. We got that, so that was nice to get for us. That’s a bonus.”

DeAndre Jordan had 18 points and 17 rebounds to lead LA, while Chris Paul added 17 points and 9 assists.  The Clippers had 6 players in double figures, which included all 5 starters and Jamal Crawford off the bench.

“Maybe a few weeks ago, our spirit just wasn’t the same,” Paul said. “Our defensive intensity wasn’t there. I think the past couple of weeks we picked that up. It’s nice to finish the season strong, but all that was to build habits for the playoffs.”

The Kings were led by Willie Cauley-Stein, who scored 19 points and grabbed 14 rebounds.  Arron Afflalo had 18 points as well.

The Kings were the last team to defeat the Clippers back on March 26th.  Since then, the Clippers have reeled off 7 straight wins, and piled up 11 victories in their last 13 games.

Game 1 of the Clippers and Jazz will be Saturday night at Staples Center, with tip-off schedule for 7:30 pm.

Apri 10, 2017

Chris Paul led the way with 19 points, and Blake Griffin had 18 as the Clippers hammered the Rockets 125-96.  It was the Clippers 6th straight win and kept them tied with Utah in the race for 4th place in the West.

The Rockets were led by Eric Gordon, who scored 19 points.  James Harden had 14 points on just 2-9 shooting.

The Jazz and the Clippers each have one game left.  Utah won on Monday night at Golden State, and they’ll host the Spurs on Wednesday night, while the Clippers will face Sacramento at Staples Center.

After an even 1st quarter, the Clippers managed to take a 4 point lead into halftime.  Jamal Crawford would score the final 5 points of the 1st half.

By the 3rd quarter, they would break it open, outscoring the Rockets 36-12 in the period.  The quarter was highlighted by a 24-3 run, which included a DeAndre Jordan dunk off an alley-oop from Chris Paul, and a steal and a 3-pointer from J.J. Redick.  Griffin had 8 points in the quarter.

The 4th quarter was highlighted by Paul Pierce scoring 10 points in the game’s final five minutes.  He moved into 15th on the NBA career scoring list with 26,397 points, which fired up all of his teammates on the bench.

If the Clippers win on Wednesday night at home against the Kings, they will earn home court advantage in the 1st round against Utah.  They own the tie-breaker with the Jazz, after winning the season series 3-1.

April 8, 2017

The Clippers got 19 points from Chris Paul and took down the Spurs 98-87 at the AT&T Center in San Antonio.  LA improved to 3-1 on the season vs San Antonio, and inched closer to 4th place in the West.

The Clips had 6 players in double figures, including all 5 starters.  Blake Griffin had 18 points and 8 rebounds, and DeAndre Jordan had 17 points to go along with 17 rebounds.  They also dominated San Antonio in the paint, outscoring them 48-32 for the game.

Kawhi Leonard had 28 points to lead the Spurs, and LaMarcus Aldridge added 18.  San Antonio has already secured the #2 seed and will be playing a first round matchup with the Memphis Grizzlies.

After an even first quarter that saw the Spurs finish the period with a 1 point lead, the Clippers would make their move toward the end of the 1st half.  A 13-3 run over the final 4:07 of the half gave the Clippers a 52-43 lead going into the locker room.

The Spurs cut the lead to 82-78 after a jumper by Leonard.  However, the Clippers countered with an 8-0 run and pushed the lead to 82-70 heading into the 4th quarter.

Neither team shot well in the 4th quarter.  The Spurs wouldn’t get any closer than 92-83 however, and the Clips assured themselves of a 1st round matchup with the Jazz.  The only question is who will get home court.

The Clippers will return to action on Monday night against the Rockets.  Then they’ll wrap up the regular season on Wednesday vs Sacramento.

April 5, 2017

Blake Griffin scored 32 points and the Clippers won their 4th straight game by beating the Mavs 112-101 at Staples.

J.J. Redick scored 25 points, DeAndre Jordan had 20 rebounds, and Chris Paul had 22 points and 11 assists.  The Clips have won 8 of their last 10 games.

Harrison Barnes led the way for Dallas with 15 points.  The Mavs have lost 6 of their last 7 games, and are out of the West playoff race.  They have just four games left in the regular season.

It was the 3rd straight game that Griffin has scored 31 or more points.  “We keep forgetting he missed a huge part of the season,” Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. “He’s getting ready.”

The Clippers made their first nine shots of the game.  After the first quarter they shot 61% from the field and had built a 17-point lead.

Dallas got within seven in the second before the Clippers extended their lead to 18 and went into halftime ahead 62-49.

The 3rd quarter saw Yogi Ferrell score 9 points, which helped cut the Clippers’ lead to 6.  “They just kept fighting,” Rivers said. “They had a lot of reasons to say `game over’ and that made us keep playing.”  The Clippers would re-group and go on a 17-6 run.  That pushed the lead back to 17 heading into the 4th quarter.

After a Mo Speights 3- points, the Clippers had their largest lead of the game, 20 points.  The Mavs would rally again, but they never got closer than 9 points.

The Clippers moved to within a half game of idle 4th place Utah.  The Clippers have three regular-season games remaining while the Jazz have four.

Up next for the Clips will be Saturday night against the Spurs in San Antonio.

March 30, 2017

Blake Griffin led the way with 31 points and Chris Paul poured in 29 to go along with 10 assists, as the Clippers beat the Suns 124-118 on Thursday night in the desert.

The win was the 2nd in a row for the Clippers, who pulled within 1 game of the 4th place Utah Jazz in the Western Conference.  Meanwhile, the Suns lost their 10th straight game.

Phoenix was led by Devin Booker’s 33 points and season-high 9 assists.  However, the 2nd year guard fouled out with just under five minutes to play in the game.

The Clippers took a 67-59 lead into halftime after wrestling the game away from the Suns in the last 6 minutes of the 2nd quarter.  They closed the half on a 13-4 run, capped by a 23-foot jumper from Luc Richard Mbah a Moute.

The Suns would fight back in the 3rd quarter, and finished the period on a 9-0 run over the last 2:25.  TJ Warren’s put-back after an Alan Williams miss cut the Clippers’ lead to 93-92 heading into the 4th quarter.

Phoenix tied the score 102-102 after Booker’s layup with 7:50 left in the game.  However, they could never take the lead after that.  Griffin countered with a made basket and got fouled moments later, converting a 3-point play.  Chris Paul made a 10-footer, followed by 2 more free throws, and suddenly the Clippers regained control with a 7-0 run.  The Suns shaved the lead to 114-112 after Booker fouled out, but the Clips would hold them off again.

The Clippers will return home and continue to battle for playoff positioning.  Up next will be another meeting with the Lakers, which will be Saturday afternoon at Staples, in which the Clippers will be the designated home team.

March 29, 2017

J.J. Redick returned from injury to score 31 points, and the Clippers outlasted the Wizards 133-124 on Wednesday at Staples Center.

Redick had missed the Clippers game on Sunday against Sacramento with an ankle sprain.  On Wednesday night, he hit a season-high 7 three-pointers.

The other 3 members of the Clippers core also played well.  Blake Griffin scored 26 points, had 10 rebounds, and 9 assists.  DeAndre Jordan had 23 points and 18 rebounds.  Chris Paul had 27 points and dished out 13 assists.

The Wizards were led by John Wall’s 41 points, 8 assists, and 7 rebounds.  They also received 27 points from Bradley Beal.

The Clippers led by as many as 19 points midway through the third period. The Wizards chipped away in the fourth and pulled to within five points, 129-124, after Beal hit a three-pointer with 31 seconds left.  That gave the Clippers fear of blowing another big lead for the 2nd straight game.

However, Griffin made two free throws with 18 seconds left.  That put the game out of reach, as the Clippers led 131-124.

“We got some key stops down the stretch and kept playing offensively,” Coach Doc Rivers said. “We moved the ball around, got the ball in the right hands and made shots. That was the difference. We didn’t hesitate.”

The news wasn’t all good for the Clips though.  Austin Rivers left the game with a strained left-hamstring.  The injury is likely to keep him on the sidelines for at least a couple of games.

Utah also won on Wednesday night, which meant the Clippers didn’t pick up any ground in the race for 4th place in the Western Conference.  The Clips are back in action on Thursday night in Phoenix, against the Suns.