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Gameday Report: Clippers begin post-All-Star stretch at Golden State

Team Matchup Stats

7:30pm PT |

TNT |
AM 570 LA Sports

Now that the All-Star break has ended, the Clippers are set to dive back into their playoff push.

And they are diving right back into the deep-end.

The Clippers (30-26) will travel to take on the defending champion Golden State Warriors (44-14) on Thursday, one night before LA heads to Phoenix to take on the Suns (18-41) on Friday. It will represent the first of six back-to-backs left in the regular season for the Clippers.

LA and Golden State have faced off three times this season, with the Warriors winning the first two matchups and the Clippers winning the most recent. Neither team has won on their home floor against the other this season.

In their first matchup of the season on Oct. 30, Golden State defeated LA, 141-113, at STAPLES Center. Then on Jan. 6, the Warriors defeated the Clippers once again at STAPLES Center, 121-105. In that matchup, Warriors guard Steph Curry scored 45 points in 30 minutes, including eight three-pointers.

In the two teams’ most recent tilt, the Clippers turned the tables, bolstered by a career-high 50 points from Lou Williams in a 125-106 win over the Warriors at Oracle Arena. With that win, the Clippers ended an 11-game road losing streak against Golden State and a 12-game losing streak against the Warriors overall.

Thursday will represent the final matchup of the season between the Pacific Division foes, who are each in different positions as the regular season nears its close.

The Clippers are fighting for a spot in the playoffs, during a season that has been marred by injuries. LA is currently in the ninth spot, only a half-game out of eighth, 1 game out of sixth and seventh, and 1.5 games out of fifth. Conversely, the Warriors are in the second spot in the West, a half-game behind Houston for the best record in the NBA and No. 1 seed in the Western Conference.

The Clippers are 5-1 over their last six and the Warriors are 3-3 over their last six.

Thursday’s game will tip-off at 7:30 p.m. PST.