National Basketball Association
L.A. Clippers 98, Memphis 91
When: 10:30 PM ET, Thursday, January 26, 2012
Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Officials:
#70 Brent Barnaky, #43 Dan Crawford, #12 Violet Palmer
Attendance:
19275
By SportsDirect Inc.
Blake Griffin just missed a triple-double with 20 points, nine rebounds and eight assists as the Los Angeles Clippers held off the visiting Memphis Grizzles 98-91 on Thursday night.
Chris Paul and Mo Williams scored 18 points apiece and Caron Butler added 17 as the Clippers pulled away in the final minute to improve to 9-1 at home this season.
Rudy Gay scored a game-high 24 points and Marc Gasol had 16 points and 11 rebounds for Memphis, which lost its second straight following a seven-game winning streak.
The Clippers appeared on the way to a cakewalk after building a 16-point first-quarter lead and ripping off runs of 7-0, 9-0 and 11-0.
Gay turned the momentum when he ended the quarter by banking in a 3-pointer from beyond the halfcourt line to pull the Grizzlies within 29-17.
Gay then scored the first five points to trigger an 11-0 run to open the second quarter that pulled Memphis within a point and the game stayed nip-and-tuck the rest of the way.
Williams scored nine points in the first seven minutes of the final quarter as Los Angeles opened an 89-80 lead, only to see the Grizzlies cut the deficit to 91-89 with 1:19 left.
Butler finally halted the comeback, scoring on a baseline drive and burying two free throws to build the lead to eight points.
Top Game Performances
Memphis |
|
L.A. Clippers |
Rudy Gay 24 |
Scoring |
Blake Griffin 20 |
Mike Conley 7 |
Assists |
Blake Griffin 8 |
Marc Gasol 11 |
Rebounds |
Blake Griffin 9 |
Tony Allen 8 |
Free Throws Made |
Chris Paul 10 |
Mike Conley 4 |
Steals |
Mo Williams 4 |
Mike Conley 1 |
Blocks |
DeAndre Jordan 3 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
Memphis
|
91 |
35.7 |
6-18 |
25-31 |
18 |
42 |
4 |
9 |
17 |
L.A. Clippers
|
98 |
48.6 |
9-22 |
19-27 |
24 |
37 |
5 |
10 |
18 |
Upcoming Games
-
L.A. Clippers will play their next game on the road against Denver. The Clippers have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .833 after a loss.
-
Memphis will play their next game on the road against Phoenix. The Grizzlies have a W/L % of .700 after a win and .375 after a loss.