NBA: Clippers take down Spurs again, but lose Chris Paul to injury

Despite losing Chris Paul to a hamstring injury, the Los Angeles Clippers beat the San Antonio Spurs 106-101 at Staples Center on Thursday.

Paul suffered a strained left hamstring early in the third quarter and did not return. He finished with a team-high 19 points, six assists and seven rebounds in 23 minutes.

Without Paul, the Clippers received a boost from their bench. Marreese Speights had 14 points, seven rebounds and five assists, while Raymond Felton added 13 points.

Jamal Crawford chipped in 11 points as the Clippers' reserves outscored the Spurs' bench 58-31.

Center DeAndre Jordan had 11 points and nine rebounds, and J.J. Redick also scored 11 for the Clippers (22-8), who beat the Spurs for the second time this season.

Kawhi Leonard led the Spurs (23-6) with 27 points and nine rebounds. Pau Gasol contributed 21 points and eight rebounds. Danny Green and LaMarcus Aldridge scored 10 apiece.

The Spurs lost for only the second time on the road and are 15-2 away from home.

The Spurs played without reserve Manu Ginobili after Spurs coach Gregg Popovich decided to rest the 39-year-old before the trip.

Before leaving, Paul passed Kevin Garnett (16th) for career steals with 1,859. Paul is one theft shy of moving pass Isiah Thomas for 15th place at 1,861.

Paul's problem added to the Clippers' injury woes. Forward Blake Griffin underwent arthroscopic knee surgery on Tuesday and could be out for up to six weeks.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Paul scores 28 as Clippers beat Trail Blazers

Chris Paul scored 28 points, dished out 11 assists and grabbed six rebounds, leading the Los Angeles Clippers to a 115-95 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers in Game 1 of a Western Conference quarterfinal playoff series Sunday night at Staples Center.

Blake Griffin added 19 points, 12 rebounds and six assists for Los Angeles, and DeAndre Jordan contributed 18 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks.

J.J. Redick chipped in 17 points for the Clippers, who blew the game open in the third quarter. Jamal Crawford and Austin Rivers came off the bench to score 13 and 11 points, respectively, for Los Angeles, which beat Portland for the fourth consecutive meeting.

Damian Lilliard had 21 points and eight assists for the Trail Blazers, while Gerald Henderson finished with 16 points. CJ McCollum managed just nine points. Al-Farouq Aminu scored 10 points and collected 12 rebounds.

Game 2 of the best-of-seven series is Wednesday at Staples Center.

Los Angeles increased its eight-point margin at the half into a double-digit advantage in the third quarter. Griffin's dunk pushed the lead to 65-48, and the margin grew to as much as 21 before the Clippers carried an 81-66 edge into the final period.

The lead never dipped below 14 in the fourth quarter. The Blazers intentionally fouled Jordan, a 43 percent free-throw shooter during the regular season who converted eight of 18 attempts for the game, but that failed to generate a rally, either.

Paul scored eight of his 12 second-quarter points in the final 1:34 of the half as the Clippers closed on a 10-2 run and seized a 50-42 lead at the break.

The Clippers held the Trail Blazers to 35.4 percent shooting in the first half while hitting 50 percent of their shots. They also had the edge on foul shots, making 14 of 19 (73.7 percent) to only three of six (50 percent) for Portland.

Overall, the Clippers hit 53.8 percent of their shots to 39.8 for the Blazers. From the foul line, Los Angeles made 25 of 39 (64.1 percent) at the foul line to 19 of 26 (73.1 percent) for Portland.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Clippers rout T-Wolves; Wizards beat Heat

Clippers 127, Timberwolves 101

Forward Blake Griffin and guard J.J. Redick scored 23 points apiece, and the Los Angeles Clippers rolled past the Minnesota Timberwolves 127-101.

Redick, who made seven of 11 shots from the floor, including four of five three-point attempts, scored 17 first-half points as the Clippers (12-5) claimed a season-high fifth straight win and earned their 10th consecutive verdict over the Timberwolves (4-12).

Clippers forward Spencer Hawes delivered 14 points off the bench, point guard Chris Paul scored 12 points and recorded eight assists, and center DeAndre Jordan finished with 11 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks.

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Wizards 107, Heat 86

Swingman Rasual Butler scored 23 points and guard John Wall had 18 points and 13 assists as the Washington Wizards blitzed the Miami Heat 107-86.

Center Marcin Gortat had 15 points and 10 rebounds for the Wizards (10-5), who led the Heat by as many as 25 points.

Center Chris Bosh scored 21 points while guard Dwyane Wade contributed 20 points for the Heat (9-8).

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Nuggets 103, Jazz 101

Point guard Ty Lawson hit a go-ahead jumper and forward Darrell Arthur nailed two clutch free throws to lift the Denver Nuggets to a 103-101 win over the Utah Jazz.

Lawson finished with 15 points and 12 assists as the Nuggets improved to 9-8 with their eighth victory in 10 games.

Denver led by as many as 22 points in the first half but the Jazz (5-13) had a couple of chances to tie or take a lead in the final moments only to fall short.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com