LA Clippers (40-28) at Portland (20-49) 9:00 pm EST
PORTLAND, Oregon (Ticker) -- This season, the Los Angeles Clippers
are doing some trail blazing of their own.
The Clippers look to continue both their playoff push and their
hunt for team milestones Sunday when they take the court against
the Portland Trail Blazers for the second time this season.
Los Angeles reached the 40-win plateau Saturday with a 116-101
triumph over Washington. This is the first 40-win season in 13
years for the Clippers, who have to go 10-4 the rest of the way
to surpass the previous franchise record of 49 wins set by the
Buffalo Braves in 1974-75.
All-Star Elton Brand fueled the victory over the Wizards with 32
points and nine rebounds. Sam Cassell collected 26 points and
Chris Kaman added 21 and 13 boards for Los Angeles, which has
won seven of 10 games following a stretch in which it lost seven
of 10.
The Clippers currently stand in the fifth spot in the Western
Conference, one-half game ahead of the Memphis Grizzlies.
Meanwhile, the Trail Blazers have lost seven straight games
following Friday's 98-79 defeat vs. San Antonio. Steve Blake
and Zach Randolph scored 11 points apiece for Portland, which
has not dropped eight straight since a 12-game skid in February
1986.
Los Angeles, which posted a 100-94 victory here on January 1,
has not won two straight visits to the Rose Garden since
February 16, 1992 and February 14, 1993.





