National Basketball Association
Phoenix 114, L.A. Clippers 105
When: 10:30 PM ET, Wednesday, April 13, 2016
Where: Talking Stick Resort Arena, Phoenix, Arizona
Officials:
#56 Mark Ayotte, #10 Ron Garretson, #64 Justin VanDuyne
Attendance:
18055
By The Sports Xchange
PHOENIX -- For the Phoenix Suns, the goal was finishing the season strong. For the Los Angeles Clippers, it was about being strong for the finish.
Mirza Teletovic led seven players in double figures with 22 points as the Suns closed out a disappointing season with a 114-105 win over the playoff-bound Clippers on Wednesday.
Jon Leuer had 16 points and 14 rebounds, and Alan Williams added 14 points and 12 rebounds for the Suns, who finished with a 23-59 record, the second-worst record in the franchise's 48-year history.
Phoenix won three of its final four games.
"It was awesome to win the game and a dream come true for me," said Williams, who played blocks away from the arena at Phoenix North High School and had his first career double-double in his 10th NBA game after signing with the Suns in March. "Hometown team. Hometown kid. It's a storybook ... kind of beginning you could say. Hopefully I continue to improve and the team can continue to make strides in the right direction."
Teletovic had two 3-pointers Wednesday and finished with 179 for the season, an NBA record for 3-pointers by a reserve.
Wesley Johnson and C.J. Wilcox each scored 19 points for the Clippers, while Austin Rivers added 16 points. Los Angeles played without starters Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan, Chris Paul and J.J. Redick and sixth man Jamal Crawford for rest and due to minor injuries.
"I just think some guys got tired," Austin Rivers said. "We were just having fun. Everybody was smiling and laughing. We deserve it. We had a good season, and we've gone through a lot. Now the season really starts."
Los Angeles (53-29) finished as the fourth seed in the Western Conference, earning a date with the fifth-seeded Portland Trail Blazers in the first round of the playoffs.
"We'll be ready, they'll be ready," Los Angeles coach Doc Rivers said. "They have two terrific guards (Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum), and (coach) Terry Stotts has done an amazing job with the role players they have around those guards. We had some interesting games during the regular season, so I'm looking forward to it.
Forward P.J. Tucker had 12 of Phoenix's 25 points in the first quarter and four rebounds. His layup off an Archie Goodwin feed gave the Suns a 16-8 lead with 5:08.
Tucker finished with 14 points and seven rebounds.
"I am really happy for my guys tonight after all we've been through this year," Tucker said. "The ups and downs, the injuries, we've really been through the wringer. We had high expectations for the season, and it didn't go as planned. These last 20 games, I love how we came out and fought every single night and stuck together."
The Clippers played all 10 of their available players in the first quarter and answered with a 17-4 run. Jeff Ayres followed a Johnson 3-pointer with a layup to give Los Angeles a 25-20 lead. The Clippers had four 3-pointers and led 27-25 at the end of the quarter.
Williams has nine of his 11 first-half points in the second quarter, during which Phoenix shot 52 percent, scored 37 points and didn't commit a turnover. The Suns opened the period with a 12-4 run and ended it with a 9-2 run. Tucker dunked off the fastbreak with 37.9 seconds left to give the Suns a 62-55 lead at the half.
The Suns pushed their lead to as many as 14 points in the third quarter and 18 points in the fourth.
NOTES: Even with the second-worst record in franchise history, the Suns finished the 2015-16 season with an all-time winning percentage of .546, which is the fourth best in NBA history. Only the Spurs (.621), Lakers (.602) and Celtics (.588) are better. ... Clippers G J.J. Redick suffered a left heel contusion in the team's 110-84 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday and was held out as a precaution. ... F Luc Mbah a Moute was the only regular Los Angeles starter who made the trip. "We're punishing him," Clippers coach Doc Rivers joked. ... Suns F P.J. Tucker had three double-doubles in the first 74 games of the season but added four in the last eight games, averaging 14 points and 9.3 rebounds during that span. ... The five missing Clippers -- Jamal Crawford, Blake Griffin, DeAndre Jordan, Chris Paul and Redick -- averaged a combined 84.1 points per game this season.
Top Game Performances
L.A. Clippers |
|
Phoenix |
Wesley Johnson 19 |
Scoring |
Mirza Teletovic 22 |
Pablo Prigioni 9 |
Assists |
Archie Goodwin 5 |
Cole Aldrich 10 |
Rebounds |
Jon Leuer 14 |
Cole Aldrich 4 |
Free Throws Made |
Mirza Teletovic 4 |
Pablo Prigioni 4 |
Steals |
Chase Budinger 2 |
Cole Aldrich 3 |
Blocks |
Alan Williams 3 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
L.A. Clippers
|
105 |
44.8 |
9-31 |
10-12 |
23 |
40 |
6 |
9 |
15 |
Phoenix
|
114 |
45.5 |
7-26 |
17-22 |
26 |
58 |
5 |
10 |
17 |
Upcoming Games
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L.A. Clippers will play their next game at home against Portland. The Clippers have a W/L % of .630 after a win and .679 after a loss.