NBA News Wire
Clippers 100, Warriors 86
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
LOS ANGELES — Reserve guard Jamal Crawford scored 24 points and grabbed seven rebounds, and the Los Angeles Clippers shook off a rough first half to defeat the Golden State Warriors 100-86 on Thursday night at Staples Center.
Point guard Chris Paul had 22 points, seven rebounds and four assists and forward Blake Griffin finished with 18 points, 15 rebounds and six assists for the Clippers (20-10), who ended a two-game losing streak. Center DeAndre Jordan added 14 points and 12 rebounds.
Shooting guard Klay Thompson led the Warriors with 15 points, while point guard Stephen Curry finished with 14 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Forward Harrison Barnes had 12 points and 13 rebounds as Golden State (23-5) dropped its second straight and its third in the past 21 games.
It was the first meeting in Los Angeles between the two clubs since the Clippers captured last season’s first-round playoff series in seven games. Golden State, though, won the initial regular-season encounter, a 121-104 rout on Nov. 5 in Oakland.
A 15-4 run to open the fourth quarter gave the Clippers an 88-74 advantage after Jordan’s dunk with 6:48 left in the game and sealed the win. The Warriors were unable to get any closer than 12 the rest of the way.
The Clippers got off to a slow start, but the Warriors failed to take advantage of it. After a Jordan dunk opened the scoring, the Clippers missed 16 shots in a row. Still, the Warriors, who led by as much as 11 in the first half, managed just a 20-18 lead after one period and 42-41 at the half.
Los Angeles managed just 27.7 percent shooting at the break compared to 45 percent for the Warriors. Griffin had one of his worst halves of the season, misfiring on eight of his 10 attempts for six points.
In the third, though, the Clippers began to find their stroke. A three-point play and a 3-pointer by Paul gave them a 67-61 lead with 3:23 remaining in the quarter. Golden State cut the margin to one before Paul’s layup to end the quarter put Los Angeles up 73-70.
NOTES: Warriors C Andrew Bogut, who missed his eighth game with a right knee injury, is improving and could begin on-court workouts soon, coach Steve Kerr said. “It’s hard to put a number on (when Bogut will return), but he’s doing better and hopefully he’ll be out on the court in the next few days,” Kerr said. … Clippers backup C Spencer Hawes sat out his eighth contest with a left knee bruise. There is no timetable for his return. … Golden State opens a six-game homestand Saturday against the Minnesota Timberwolves. … The Clippers play the second game of their nine-game run at Staples Center on Saturday against the Toronto Raptors.
