Hornets 105, Clippers 98: Greivis Vasquez scored 25 points and dished out 10 assists as visiting New Orleans snapped its seven-game losing streak.
Ryan Anderson and Jason Smith scored 17 points apiece and rookie Austin Rivers added 14 off the bench for the Hornets, who held their opponent under 100 points for the first time in eight contests.
Caron Butler sank a franchise-record nine 3-pointers en route to a game-high 33 points and Chris Paul chipped in 20 points for Los Angeles, which has lost four in a row. The Clippers' previous mark for most 3-pointers in a game was eight by Randy Foye.
Down by 11 points in the second quarter, Los Angeles got within 53-52 early in the third on a jump shot by Willie Green and tied it at 68-68 on a 3-pointer by Butler with 4:01 remaining in the period. New Orleans ended the third on a 13-2 run to push its lead back to 11, and a shot from beyond the arc by Vasquez with 6:42 left in the fourth made it 94-77.
A 3-pointer by Paul and a pair of free throws by Jamal Crawford with 1:38 to play got the Clippers within 101-95. But they missed four 3-point attempts in a span of 18.1 seconds, and the Hornets sank four free throws to seal the win.
GAME NOTEBOOK: The Clippers never led again after a jumper by Paul with 2:10 remaining in the first quarter gave them a 19-18 edge. ... Butler reached the 30-point mark for the first time since Dec. 30, 2010 while with the Dallas Mavericks. ... Los Angeles scored only 19 points in the first quarter, marking the fifth time in the last three games it has recorded 19 or less in a period.
New Orleans | L.A. Clippers | |
Greivis Vasquez 25 | Scoring | Caron Butler 33 |
Greivis Vasquez 10 | Assists | Chris Paul 8 |
Al-Farouq Aminu 8 | Rebounds | Matt Barnes 8 |
Jason Smith 7 | Free Throws Made | Jamal Crawford 2 |
Al-Farouq Aminu 4 | Steals | Chris Paul 4 |
Ryan Anderson 1 | Blocks | Matt Barnes 3 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
New Orleans | 105 | 50.7 | 15-25 | 18-23 | 23 | 36 | 3 | 6 | 15 |
L.A. Clippers | 98 | 46.8 | 18-37 | 6-11 | 26 | 32 | 5 | 11 | 15 |