LOS ANGELES -- Despite straining a hamstring in the first quarter, Chris Paul delivered a painful ending to the championship run of the San Antonio Spurs.

Paul scored the winning bucket with one second left, lifting the Los Angeles Clippers to a series-clinching 111-109 win over the defending NBA champion Spurs in Game 7 of their Western Conference first-round playoff matchup on Saturday night at Staples Center.

"I thought about our team and all the things we've been through," said Paul, who scored 18 points in the second half and connected on 9 of 13 shots from the floor, including 5 of 6 from 3-point range. "I know that if it was any other guy on our team in a situation like this, they wouldn't have laid down. Just tried to find a way."

Griffin had trouble finding words to describe Paul's performance, but like Paul, he found a way, too.

"It was unbelievable," Griffin said.

Paul banked in a leaner over Spurs forward Tim Duncan and finished with 27 points as the Clippers advanced to the conference semifinals against the Houston Rockets. Paul said he expects to play in Game 1 on Monday in Houston.

Griffin added 24 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists for his second triple-double of the series.

Duncan finished with 27 points on 11-of-16 shooting and grabbed 11 rebounds to lead the Spurs. Point guard Tony Parker had 20 points.

Paul sustained the injury late in the first quarter. He returned to the game with 6:27 left in the second quarter after spending an extended amount of time in the locker room but clearly favored his left leg for the rest of the first half. However, with the game on the line, the Clippers point guard came through with one of the biggest buckets of his career.

"It was incredible, all around," Duncan said of Paul's effort. "Just an amazing competitor. I know he was a little hurt, I know he was playing a little hurt, and he played through all that, found ways to get it done."

There were 31 lead changes and 16 ties, including several down the stretch. Clippers shooting guard J.J. Redick's 3-point jumper tied the score at 97 with 4:58 left. After a basket by Duncan, Redick buried another trey for a brief Clippers lead.

Griffin's two free throws with 3:35 remaining put Los Angeles up 102-101. However, Duncan's putback and forward Kawhi Leonard's follow of a miss by guard Patty Mills lifted the Spurs to a 105-102 lead before Barnes' 3-pointer tied the score again at 105.

Parker's putback made it 107-105 for the Spurs with 1:23 remaining. Clippers guard Jamal Crawford, who finished with 16 points, scored on a drive to tie it. Paul's two free throws with 13.3 seconds left gave the Clippers a 109-107 lead.

Duncan, who refused to comment on whether he will retire or return next season, converted two foul shots with 8.8 seconds remaining to knot the score at 109 before Paul's heroics. The Spurs failed to get a shot off in the end as forward Matt Barnes batted an inbound pass away under the San Antonio basket.

"We had a great opportunity to try to win it at the end," Parker said. "We just missed a couple of shots and defensive stops."

Los Angeles shot 52.6 percent (40 of 76) from the floor compared with 48.3 percent (43 of 89) for San Antonio. The Clippers also made 14 of 27 (51.9 percent) on 3-pointers and the Spurs managed 10 of 25 (40 percent).

The Clippers led 57-55 lead at the break.

The score was tied at 76 with 7.8 seconds remaining in the third quarter when the Spurs got a break. San Antonio guard Manu Ginobili drew a foul on Los Angeles guard Austin Rivers in the backcourt attempting a 3-point with 7.8 seconds left in the quarter. Ginobili hit two of the three foul shots.

However, Paul banked in a 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds left, giving Los Angeles a 79-78 advantage heading into the fourth quarter.

NOTES: Spurs coach Gregg