Chauncey Billups hits game winner as Los Angeles Clippers win against Dallas Mavericks 91 – 89 – NBA Recap(Part 1)
Los Angeles Clippers transformed over the off season into a genuine force in the NBA thanks to some high profile trades. The Clippers have since proved their credentials with wins against some of the biggest names in the NBA and tonight earned more bragging
rights with a win over the reigning NBA World Champions the Dallas Mavericks 91 – 89.
Clippers took to the court at the Staples Center without super star point guard Chris Paul but that didn’t seem to affect them too much. In the absence of Paul, veteran Chauncey Billups stepped up with a thrilling 21 point, 8 rebound performance that included
the game winning three-pointer.
His performance earned him praise from head coach Vinny Del Negro, who wasn’t surprised that Billups was able to hit the clutch shot as he knows the player’s pedigree.
"Chauncey, with his experience, he has made a lot of them. It didn't surprise me that it went in. I was just pleased with the development of the play and the execution."
Billups himself was pleased with the effort and didn’t see it as a pressure situation because he has stepped up in the clutch throughout his career.
"I was so open, I was able to take my time and shoot the shot," Billups said. "They got a contest on it late, but by that time it was gone. I got a great look at it and it felt good for it to go down."
Maurice Williams was amazing as well, coming off the bench for a game high 26 points and centre DeAndre Jordan piled on 19 points and grabbed 9 boards. Sensational forward Blake Griffin produced an all round display with 14 points, 17 rebounds and 7 assists.
It was the terrific overall performance from his side that pleased Clippers head coach the most.
"I'm proud of the guys and the way we battled back and fought. We made plays when we needed to and that was the key."
The game got off to a highflying start with both sides concentrating on offence, to the joy of a packed crowd. The Mavericks, an offensive powerhouse able to take on any in the league, scored 27 points in the first period but were outdone by Los Angeles
who scraped 31.
Things slowed down in the second quarter as the sides looked to gain control of the game. Dallas showed their maturity and experience in getting the upper hand in this period and used it to claw down their deficit to just one point at the break, the score
52 – 51.
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