Clippers-Trail Blazers Preview

By NICOLINO DIBENEDETTO
Posted Feb 16 2012 2:50AM

The Pacific Division-leading Los Angeles Clippers are on a roll behind Blake Griffin.

The Portland Trail Blazers are just seeking back-to-back wins for the first time in nearly a month, but are again likely without their big man.

Griffin and the Clippers look to capitalize on another expected absence from LaMarcus Aldridge on Thursday night when they try to beat the Trail Blazers at the Rose Garden for the first time in over three years.

Los Angeles (18-9) leads the Pacific by two games on the rival Los Angeles Lakers, and has won nine of 12 while averaging 100.5 points - 103.4 in the victories.

Griffin is a big part of the Clippers' success, leading them with 21.2 points and 11.0 rebounds per game. The All-Star forward has hit his averages over the last 12 games and looking to build on his 23 points and 15 boards that spurred a 102-84 rout of Washington on Wednesday.

Los Angeles hasn't been able to capitalize on some strong performances from Griffin in Portland (16-14). He's averaging 19.7 points and 15.0 rebounds in three visits to the Rose Garden, but they've all ended in Clippers defeats. Their losing streak there is five games dating to a 120-112 double-overtime win on Dec. 12, 2008.

The Clippers lost 105-97 there Jan. 10 despite 18 points and 12 boards from Griffin.

Griffin, though, could have his way in the low post since Aldridge is expected to be out again with a sprained left ankle. The forward leads Portland with averages of 22.6 points and 8.3 rebounds, and could be back Saturday versus Atlanta.

Until then, the Trail Blazers will try to cope and win back-to-back contests for the first time since Jan. 23-24. They did well without the All-Star on Wednesday, getting 24 points from forward Gerald Wallace and two key free throws from Jamal Crawford with 44 seconds to play to give Portland a 93-91 victory at Golden State.

"A win like this can catapult us," said Crawford, who had 14 points. "We were the aggressors and usually the aggressors win."

Crawford and Wallace average 14.3 and 14.2 points, respectively, and will likely be relied upon again. Wallace has totaled 49 points in two games, and made 8 of 12 field goals to finish with 20 points against the Clippers on Jan. 10.

Crawford wasn't as productive in that victory, being held to nine after averaging 27.0 over his previous three games against them.

Los Angeles' Caron Butler, however, is averaging 23.5 points and 8.0 boards over his last four games at Portland, scoring 20 there last month. The forward has totaled 44 points and 13 boards in his last two contests.

More contributions from Randy Foye could help the Clippers' end their skid at the Rose Garden. The guard scored all 10 of his points in the fourth quarter Wednesday against his former team, reaching double digits for the fourth time in five games.

"Foye was outstanding, and we're going to need that from him," guard Chris Paul said. "I've known him for years and I used to play against him when he was in Minnesota. Foye was one of those guys who used to give us fits because he's such a good player. I think at times, he's better than he thinks he is. So we just need him to keep getting his confidence."

Griffin helps Clippers rally past Blazers 74-71

Posted Feb 17 2012 2:36AM

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) Chris Paul doesn't often struggle to score. But on Thursday, the Los Angeles Clippers guard was having one of those nights.

Through three quarters against Portland, Paul was scoreless, shot 0 for 7 from the field and had just one assist. But the four-time All-Star saved his best for the fourth quarter, as Paul scored 13 points to help the Clippers rally for a 74-71 win over the Trail Blazers.

"I've had bad games before, so I didn't care," Paul said. "If we would have lost, I would have beat myself up. The fourth quarter is when it all matters."

Blake Griffin had 21 points and 14 rebounds to lead Los Angeles, which won for the first time in Portland since Dec. 12, 2008. The Clippers (19-9) trailed by as many as 18 points during the second half, and outscored Portland 22-11 during the fourth quarter.

Portland led 60-54 when Paul scored his first basket of the game, with 9:15 remaining. That seemed to ignite the Clippers, who went on a 14-3 run to take command of the game. Paul scored 11 points during that seven-minute stretch.

Paul was puzzled about his early struggles, saying "I had a bunch of gimmes, but I couldn't get it going."

Griffin didn't believe the Blazers could blank Paul for an entire game.

"He said, `Man, I just need to see it go in,"' Griffin said. "I noticed he shot a little jumper after the whistle and I thought to myself, `I hope that was the one he needed.' Then, he hit a little jump shot and it was rollin' from there. He can do that."

Paul said he gathered the team right before the fourth quarter and gave his teammates an inspirational message. Then Paul delivered with his performance, hitting five of eight shots, as well as collecting two steals during the final 12 minutes.

Williams scored 17 points for Los Angeles.

Nicolas Batum and Jamal Crawford scored 19 points each for Portland (16-15). The Trail Blazers were playing for a second straight game without All-Star forward LaMarcus Aldridge, who sprained his left ankle in Tuesday's game against Washington.

Both teams were held to season lows for points.

Portland was playing its third game in three days, and Griffin acknowledged that the combination of Aldridge's absence and fatigue might have been a factor in the fourth quarter. Crawford said it had to do with the Blazers' playing style.

"It was a collapse. A total collapse," Crawford said. "In the fourth quarter, it felt like we started playing like we were playing from behind, and we were up. They became the aggressors. We were the aggressors the first three quarters."

Portland's defense stumped the Clippers for most of the first half. Los Angeles made just 15 of 45 shots, and of its 15 field goals, seven were putbacks of offensive rebounds.

Batum got Portland rolling, scoring 15 points during the first quarter to stake the Blazers to a 27-20 lead. Early in the second, Crawford hit a 3-pointer as Portland scored eight unanswered points to build the lead to 15 points. The struggling Clippers were able to pull to within 43-32 by halftime.

Portland went on a scoring spurt by scoring the first seven points of the second half to take a 50-32 lead. But the Blazers' offense suddenly went cold, and Los Angeles slowly began its huge rally.

Portland made two field goals during a 9-minute stretch, and the Clippers shaved the deficit to 64-62 on Paul's layup with 6:56 remaining. Three minutes later, Williams' 3-pointer gave Los Angeles the lead at 67-66.

Paul hit a 3, then followed with a 16-footer with 1:05 left to put the Clippers ahead 72-67. Portland had chance to tie, but Wesley Matthews' wild 3-point shot missed at the buzzer.

"This says that we've matured as a team," Griffin said. "I think we've answered the question that we can win on the road."

Notes: Blazers owner Paul Allen issued a statement regarding news of a proposal of a new arena in Seattle and the possible return of the NBA to that city, saying: "It's exciting to think about the NBA coming back to Seattle and renewing the rivalry with the Portland Trail Blazers. However, it is too early for me to comment further without a specific plan or proposal to review." ... Los Angeles' 32 first-half points were a season low. The previous mark was 36 against San Antonio. ... The Clippers missed their first 11 shots from 3-point range.

Notebook: Clippers 74, Blazers 71

Posted Friday February 17, 2012 2:32AM

By Kerry Eggers, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Los Angeles outscored Portland 22-11 in the fourth quarter to pull out a grinding, come-from-behind 74-71 victory Thursday night at the Rose Garden. It was the fourth straight home loss for the Blazers (16-15), who were playing their third game in three nights.

Blake Griffin collected 21 points and 14 rebounds for the Clippers (19-9), who were playing the second of back-to-back games. Chris Paul -- 0-for-7 and scoreless through three quarters -- was 5-for-8 and scored all 13 of his points in the final stanza.

Portland held an 18-point advantage early in the third period but scored on 28 second-half points. Nicolas Batum and Jamal Crawford each scored 19 points for the Blazers. Wesley Matthews -- whose desperation, turnaround 3-point attempt at the buzzer went awry -- added 16.

QUOTABLE: "I couldn't make a shot. [The Blazers] were doing a really good job of defending. ... I'm still mad I didn't perform, but in the fourth quarter I was telling the guys that's where it matters."
-- Chris Paul, who scored all 13 of his points in the final 9:35 of the game.

THE STAT: The Clippers won despite shooting .385 from the field, including 2-for-17 from 3-point range. The winners missed their first 13 attempts from beyond the arc. Portland shot .380 from the field after shooting .577 through a quarter in a half. Over the last 2 1/2 periods, the Blazers made 12-for-44 from the field (.273).

TURNING POINT: Portland led 66-64 inside the final five minutes. At that point, the Clippers were 0-for-13 on 3-point attempts. Then Mo Williams and Paul each drilled one from beyond the arc for a 70-67 lead. The Blazers never recovered.

QUOTABLE II: "We had a pretty good win last night. We were in a good mood today. We did a good job the first half. Then we started to relax a little bit and killed ourselves."
-- Portland's Nicolas Batum, who scored 15 of his 19 points in the first quarter.

HOT: Batum's first quarter was suitable for framing -- 15 points on 6-for-7 shooting, including 2-for-2 from 3-point range. He hit his first shot of the second quarter, a 19-footer to give the Blazers a 39-24 lead. He was 1 for 8 the rest of the way.

NOT: Raymond Felton continued his shooting woes, going 0-for-7 from the field. Portland's point guard was scoreless with two assists and five turnovers in 24 minutes.

QUOTABLE III: "Coach [Vinny] Del Negro kept telling us, 'In the fourth quarter -- that's when it's going to happen.' And that's when we made our run."
-- Clippers forward Blake Griffin.

INSIDE THE ARENA: Actor Timothy Hutton, in Portland filming his TV series "Leverage," was courtside.

GOOD MOVE: The Clippers began switching everything on the Blazers' pick-and-rolls sets late in the first half. From that point, Portland's offense went stagnant.

BAD MOVE: Batum, the Blazers' best offensive threat through three quarters, took only one shot the final 12 minutes.

NOTABLE: It's the first time Portland has lost four straight home games since Dec. 29, 2006 through Jan. 7, 2007.

UP NEXT: For the Blazers, Saturday vs. Atlanta, Monday at L.A. Lakers, Tuesday vs. San Antonio. For the Clippers, Saturday vs. San Antonio, Monday at Golden State, Wednesday vs. Denver.

• Clippers: Billups
• Trail Blazers: Aldridge, Oden

• Clippers: Griffin
• Trail Blazers: Crawford

• Lead Changes: 3
• Times Tied: 3

• Arena: Rose Garden, Portland, OR
• Officials: #41 Ken Mauer, #44 Eli Roe, #65 Sean Wright
• Attendance: 20665
• Duration: 2:28