Rowan Kavner
LOS ANGELES – DeAndre Jordan stripped the ball, watched it graze off Nick Calathes and roared in approval as the Clippers gained possession in a tie game late in the fourth quarter Saturday night.
It was those types of plays from Jordan, who did much of the dirty work and played above the rim offensively, along with timely shooting down the stretch from Chris Paul, J.J. Redick and Blake Griffin that helped the Clippers (54-26) capture their 12th win in their last 13 games in a 94-86 victory against the Grizzlies (54-26).
With just two games remaining, the Clippers find themselves in a three-way tie for second place in the Western Conference with the Rockets in position to make it a four-way tie if they beat the Pelicans on Sunday.
“We’ll take the wins,” said Blake Griffin. “To be in the position we are is great. I have no idea what it breaks down to…I have no clue. I was talking with somebody and we pretty much came to the conclusion that we have no idea.”
It’s a crowded race in what Matt Barnes called the “Wild West,” and the Clippers’ first-round opponent is still a mystery. Instead of trying to figure out their foe, all they’re concerned about is winning.
Jordan helped them do that Saturday on both ends, including his hustle play on Calathes. That led to a Clippers 12-4 run, beginning with a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer from Redick. Head coach Doc Rivers described it as “a strange game,” where neither team could get much rhythm.
That made it even more important for momentum-swinging plays down the stretch, including the Jordan deflection and the Redick deep ball.
“The game was kind of sloppy,” Jordan said. “We knew we weren’t going to score a ton of points. We just needed as many grind-out plays as we could have offensively and defensively. When we needed them, we got them.”
Included in that 12-4 run for the Clippers was a 3-pointer from Paul, followed by another bucket from Paul. That gave the Clippers their first four-point lead since the start of the fourth quarter, when Jamal Crawford drilled a 3-pointer.
It was one of just a few long-range hits for either team, as both teams finished 22.2 percent from 3-point range. The Grizzlies only took nine 3-pointers, while the Clippers took 27. Despite the struggles from deep, the Clippers grabbed that four-point lead courtesy of Paul and led by at least four points the rest of the way.
“What I liked is we didn’t lose our composure,” Rivers said. “We kind of just hung around, had the lead, lost the lead and did enough to win the game.”
The Clippers already had the benefit of playing a Grizzlies team missing both Mike Conley and Tony Allen. Then Marc Gasol left the game, only playing 10 minutes before spraining his ankle and sitting the rest of the night.
Jordan took advantage, scoring 16 points and pulling down 16 rebounds while going 4-of-5 from the free-throw line. None of the Clippers reached the 20-point mark, but Griffin and Redick each had 18 points apiece, while Paul had 15 points and 14 assists.
“That’s not the team that’ll be there in the playoffs,” Paul said about a shorthanded Grizzlies team the Clippers could see in the playoffs, “but we can’t do anything about it.”
NOTES: The Clippers host the Nuggets on Monday and play in Phoenix on Tuesday to close the regular season … Griffin crossed the 8,000 career-point mark in the win … The Clippers forced 18 turnovers from the Grizzlies and won despite shooting 39.8 percent from the floor … Redick’s 3-pointer at the 11:22 mark in the first quarter was the Clippers’ 800th of the season … The Clippers are one of only 10 teams to make at last 800 3-pointers in a single season since the 3-point shot was implemented …
