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Schedule Breakdown: April

Clippers.com has analyzed the schedule after its release earlier this month and also took a look at 10 of the biggest games for the coming season. Now, this latest series takes a closer look with a monthly breakdown of the schedule, moving on to April.

Rowan Kavner

Previous Breakdowns: October/November | December | January | February | March

PLAYA VISTA, Calif. – If the Clippers can repeat last April, they’ll be in good shape.

The Clippers won 14 of their final 15 regular season games last season, including all seven games in April. The Clippers will once again play seven games in April this year, including two straight against the Lakers.

After starting the month against the Wizards, the Clippers end the season with six matchups against Western Conference teams. Here’s a look at the final month of the season.

April Breakdown

Games – 7

Home – 4

Road – 3

Against playoff teams – 3

Most home games in a row – 2 (twice)

  • April 3 vs WAS
  • April 5 vs LAL 
  • April 10 vs DAL
  • April 12 vs MEM

Most road games in a row – 2

  • April 6 @ LAL
  • April 8 @ UTA

Back-to-backs – 2

  • April 5 vs LAL/April 6 @ LAL
  • April 12 vs MEM/April 13 @ PHX

Key Matchups

April 3 vs Washington – The Clippers split the season series against the Wizards last year, and even though Washington lost Paul Pierce to the Clippers in the offseason, any team with John Wall and Bradley Beal is capable of going off at any point. Last year, the Clippers swept the month of April. If they’re to do that again, it has to start against a tough Wizards group.

April 12 vs Memphis – Last April, the toughest matchup of the month came against the Grizzlies at home. The Clippers left Staples Center with an eight-point win, further cementing their momentum entering the postseason. The Clippers will get that chance once again, only this time with Matt Barnes on the other side.

April 13 @ Phoenix – Once again, the Clippers end the season in Phoenix. It’s possible the Clippers’ postseason fate is already sealed by the time this game comes around. More than likely, after last season’s crazy finish to the regular season in the West, this game will have major implications.

Most Memorable Win Last Year

April 1 @ Portland – The Clippers were on the second game of a back-to-back, had recently finished a three-game road trip, and were trailing by 19 points in a tough matchup at Portland as the stretch run to the postseason began. They could have folded, but the Trail Blazers’ Chris Kaman seemed to give them the energy they needed. The Clippers trailed by 11 points with 25 seconds remaining in the third quarter when Kaman shoved Chris Paul. That seemed to ignite the Clippers, who outscored the Trail Blazers by 17 points in the second half. They were led by Paul, who had a season-high 41 points and tied a season-high with 17 assists while committing just one turnover.

Toughest Stretch

April 8-13 – The Clippers end the season with a flurry of Western Conference matchups, going to Utah on April 8, returning home to play Dallas and Memphis, then going on the road to Phoenix on the second game of a back-to-back to end the season. The Jazz have an exciting young group, the Mavs lineup is completely reshuffled, the Grizzlies tend to always bring a physical matchup and the Suns added Tyson Chandler this offseason.