As the season nears its midway point, the Los Angeles Clippers visited the Golden State Warriors for one of their final two games heading into the All Star break. The Warriors sit near the bottom of the Western Conference and Pacific Division, but their 11-17 record going into the game can be deceiving. They’ve become quite the giant killers with quality wins over playoff contenders such as the Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks, Miami Heat, Portland Trailblazers, Utah Jazz, Denver Nuggets, and Houston Rockets. With rookie coach Mark Jackson and a roster full of young scorers, the Warriors can be a scrappy team for any opponent to deal with.
After the heartbreaking loss on Saturday afternoon to the San Antonio Spurs, the Clippers looked to their leader Chris Paul to lead the charge into this game. Paul, who has started off slow early in games but closed out strong, had a role reversal and took control of the game in the first half where he scored the majority of his team 24 points. Forward Blake Griffin also muscled in 21 points and 9 rebounds, while the remaining three starters scored 23 points combined.
Despite the size advantage, the Clippers found themselves trailing 29-23 at the end of the first quarter. Paul picked it up in the second quarter and hit a wide array of 3-pointers including one while the Warriors fouled DeAndre Jordan that was waived off by the officials. By halftime, the two teams were deadlocked at 56 points each.
In the second half the Warriors came out firing. They are known for their hot outside shooting and didn’t fail to live up to that reputation with guard Monta Ellis scoring a game-high 32 points connecting on 4 of 4 from deep. David Lee also contributed big with a 24 point 13 double-double.
Chris Paul to Blake Griffin for the Jam
The entire game saw 14 ties and 19 lead changes, mostly in the final frame when both teams gutted it out in this shootout. Clippers guard Mo Williams hit 6 for 8 on his 3 pointers with one that put his team up by one midway through the fourth quarter. But the Warriors matched that and more from reserve guard Nate Robinson and forward Ekpe Udoh who dominated the paint with a career high 19 points.
With the game still close in hand, the Warriors went on a 7-0 scoring run to close out the game while the Clippers went ice cold trying to create any buckets. A crucial late game turnover by Griffin followed by a bad defensive possession that allowed Robinson to run down the clock and get a wide open layup all but sealed the 104-97 victory for the home team.
The loss drops the Clippers’ record to 19-11 and to fourth in the Western Conference standings with teams like the Los Angeles Lakers just one game behind them. Their next game before the All Star break is on Wednesday night against the Denver Nuggets back inside Staples Center. Tip off is at 7:30pm PST.
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