Los Angeles Clippers move to top of Western Conference with win over San Antonio Spurs – NBA Recap
The Los Angeles Clippers improved to an 8-2 record for the season and moved to the top of the Western Conference after a 92-87 victory over the San Antonio Spurs here on Monday night at the AT&T Center. The Clippers were outplayed
in the first period by the Spurs, but quickly came back in the second period to outscore the home team 29-14, and then held on in the final two periods to take the victory in a close and tightly contested game. Chris Paul led five Clippers players in double
digits points with 19 points and 8 assists for the night, where as Blake Griffin finished with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Tim Duncan led the Spurs from the front, finishing with 20 points and 14 rebounds while going 6 of 16 from the field. Manu Ginobili came
off the bench to score 15 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists.
The Spurs, playing in front of home crowd, started the game with a three pointer by Danny Green and quickly rushed to an early 9-4 lead. The Clippers closed the gap and a jump shot by Griffin had them trailing by three, but the
Spurs replied with a 7-2 run to extend their lead to 20-12. Tiago Splitter and Manu Ginobili later hit back to back free throws and the Spurs were cruising with a 24-14 lead, as the Clippers found it difficult to get their offence going early on. The Spurs
led 28-18 at the end of the first period.
The Clippers entered the second quarter determined to not be blown away by the Clippers, and got their offense moving. After Boris Diaw scored a free throw to put the Spurs up 31-22, the Clippers went on a 10-0 run which included
six straight points by Matt Barnes, giving them a 32-31 lead over the Spurs. A three by Jamal Crawford later in the period had the Clippers up 39-33, but the Spurs closed the first half on a 6-2 run, allowing the Clippers to take a narrow 47-42 lead into the
second half.
A floating jump shot by DeJuan Blair early in the third period had the Spurs down by only three, but a 6-2 run by the Clippers helped them extend their lead back to 58-51. Griffin later nailed a dunk and the Clippers were up 67-60,
but Green replied with a three to keep the Spurs in the game. The Clippers led 71-63 going into the final period.
A three point play by Splitter followed by a jump shot by Gary Neal had the Spurs trailing 72-77 in the final period with 8:15 left in regulation, and a jump shot by Bonner later in the period followed by Bonner’s three had the
Spurs down 79-83. Parker then nailed a three followed by one from Bonner, and the Spurs only trailed by two points. However, Paul scored a crucial turnaround jumper to put the Clippers up 91-87 and Neal missed a crucial three pointer for the Spurs with 15.9
seconds left, to give the Clippers the 92-87 victory.
The Clippers shot 1 of 12 from three point range, but were 47.1 percent from the field as compared to San Antonio, who shot 35.4 percent from the field and were 6 of 20 from the distance. Los Angeles had a 52-42 advantage in rebounds,
and scored 56 points in the paint compared to 36 for the Spurs.
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