Clippers-Warriors Preview

By KATE HEDLIN
Posted Feb 19 2012 5:43PM

The Los Angeles Clippers faltered against two of the Western Conference's elite teams while splitting four games last week, but facing one of the conference's worst squads could help them bounce back.

The Clippers visit the Golden State Warriors on Monday looking to avoid their first consecutive losses since late December.

Los Angeles (19-10) has the West's third-best record, but came up short against two fellow contenders last week while going 2-2 overall. After falling 96-92 at Dallas last Monday, the Clippers were lamenting a missed opportunity in a 103-100 overtime loss to San Antonio on Saturday.

Chris Paul scored 17 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter but threw a pass right to the Spurs' Gary Neal with 6.9 seconds in regulation that led to the tying 3-pointer.

"Man, that was probably the worst play I've been a part of since I've been in the NBA," Paul said. "We obviously gave that game away right there ... We've got to win games like that."

The loss took the luster off Blake Griffin's 22 points and 20 rebounds, his first career 20-20-game. Griffin, however, only had two points in the fourth quarter, and he's totaled four in the final period of his last three contests.

After taking the blame for Saturday's loss, Paul - whose 23.0-point average at Golden State is his highest in any visiting arena - will try to help the Clippers avoid their first back-to-back losses since Dec. 28-30.

Despite his critical turnover, he's come up big in the fourth quarter of the team's last two games, scoring all 13 of his points in the final period of a 74-71 win at Portland on Thursday. However, Paul is 1 for 14 in the first three quarters of those two contests.

The Warriors (11-17) know a lot about close losses. They have dropped three straight, including a 104-103 defeat at Memphis on Saturday.

Golden State allowed a go-ahead putback with 5.6 seconds left and David Lee was called for an offensive foul with less than a second left, wasting a combined 69 points from Stephen Curry and Monta Ellis.

"It's the little things that either win or lose ball games as we continue to find out," coach Mark Jackson said. "Once again we were in a position to win the ball game and we didn't because of a defensive rebound. That's the disappointing part about it."

Of their last eight losses, five have been decided by three points or fewer and another in overtime.

The Warriors were outrebounded 45-31 Saturday and outscored 44-22 in the paint - not good signs as they prepare to face Griffin and the Clippers' frontcourt. Golden State's minus-4.46 rebounding differential is among the league's worst, while the Clippers' plus-3.14 margin is one of the NBA's best.

Griffin has averaged 25.8 points and 12.5 boards his last four games against the Warriors. He had 22 and seven in Los Angeles' 105-86 win in Oakland during Paul's Clipper debut Dec. 25.

Curry and Ellis were held to 19 points on 8 of 31 shooting - also turning it over nine times - in that loss.

Despite their 3-8 road record and general issues closing out games, the Warriors have won four of their last six at Oracle Arena.

"Certainly our record is not as good as we want it to be," Lee said. "The positive is we are not far off."

Udoh lifts Warriors past Clippers 104-97

By ANTONIO GONZALEZ
Posted Feb 21 2012 2:17AM

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) Ekpe Udoh never expected to get a coveted spot in the Golden State Warriors' starting lineup like this.

The way he produced in place of ill center Andris Biedrins almost assures he will get another chance.

In his first start of the season, Udoh had a career-high 19 points to go with eight rebounds and led the Warriors past the Los Angeles Clippers 104-97 on Monday night.

Udoh, a second-year player out of Baylor, found out during the morning shootaround that he would start, and he had the entire day to think about his chance.

"I thought it was a big opportunity. It's a big game," Udoh said. "I had to seize the opportunity, seize the moment."

Consider it done.

Udoh had a layup and followed with a tying put-back dunk with 4:05 remaining that started an 11-2 run to end the game for the Warriors. He also had two blocks, put Blake Griffin and foul trouble and limited center DeAndre Jordan, who Golden State tried to sign in free agency.

Monta Ellis scored 32 points and David Lee added 24 points and 13 rebounds to help Golden State snap a three-game losing streak and avenge a 104-86 Christmas night loss to the Clippers.

Biedrins sat out this time because of flulike symptoms, and it's unclear when he will be back or if he will return to the starting lineup when he does.

For the first time all season, rookie Warriors coach Mark Jackson indicated that Biedrins - the Latvian big man who has so often been the punching bag for Golden State's struggles - might no longer be his starting center.

"The way he played tonight, he gives us something totally different," Jackson said of Udoh. "I will take my time and assess our basketball team and we'll move forward. But he certainly is a guy, when the opportunity presented itself, to command more minutes."

The Clippers struggled to solve Golden State's defense behind a rare inside presence.

Chris Paul had 25 points, six assists and five rebounds, and Mo Williams made his first six 3-pointers and finished with 22 points in Los Angeles' second straight loss. The Clippers had 18 turnovers and shot just 42 percent.

"This one hurt, and it should hurt," said Griffin, who had 21 points and nine rebounds but was in foul trouble for most of the second half.

The rematch of the Clippers' season-opening romp looked little like the original.

Williams made his first three shots from beyond the arc in the fourth quarter, giving the Clippers a one-point lead each time. The last 3 put the Clippers ahead 89-88 halfway through the final period.

What looked to be shaping up as a back-and-forth finish turned out to be a runaway.

Brandon Rush hit a 3-pointer to put the Warriors back in front 98-97 with 2:07 left, and Ellis followed with a running floater over Jordan to extend an avalanche of offense. Udoh lay on the floor for a few minutes clutching a sprained left knee after going for the rebound on the play.

X-rays after the game were negative, and Udoh expects to be back when the Warriors open a six-game road trip at Phoenix on Wednesday night. After waiting this long for the starting spot, perhaps it's no surprise he doesn't want to rest.

"I'm doing whatever Big Dog says, Coach Jackson says, and I'll roll with it," Udoh said.

Udoh's defense paid off big.

He swarmed Griffin - who had a costly turnover when he threw a pass out of bounds in the final minute - and held Jordan to five points and 11 rebounds.

"You have a tough enough time trying to defend Monta and (Stephen) Curry alone," Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro said. "When you throw Udoh into it, it gets a lot tougher."

Golden State's boost at center kept the game close all night.

Udoh made his first five shots to power the Warriors with a rare inside presence. He also grabbed several key rebounds and knocked down a jumper in the second quarter to give Golden State a 33-23 lead early in the second quarter.

The Clippers found their spring, and so did Griffin.

The reigning NBA Rookie of the Year had a left-handed dunk, and spun around Lee for a two-hand slam during a 15-2 run that pushed Los Angeles ahead 38-35 in the second quarter. The Warriors had the final highlight of the half when Udoh swished a jumper with 2.3 seconds remaining to tie it at 56 at the break.

The Clippers turnover woes kept Golden State close.

During the third quarter, Reggie Evans had a pass intercepted by Nate Robinson. The Warriors grabbed two offensive rebounds before Jordan threw another turnover to Lee, allowing Golden State to take a 77-74 lead into the fourth quarter.

NOTES: Curry addressed the crowd before the game, thanking fans for their support in the final home game before the All-Star break. ... Entertainer Too $hort performed with the Warriors dance team during a break in the third quarter. ... Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis sat courtside in an all white team outfit. Seattle Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch and former Raiders quarterback and 1970 Heisman Trophy winner Jim Plunkett also were in attendance.

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Follow Antonio Gonzalez at: www.twitter.com/agonzalezAP

Notebook: Warriors 104, Clippers 97

Posted Tuesday February 21, 2012 2:27AM

By Geoff Lepper, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Monta Ellis had 32 points and Ekpe Udoh, making his first start of the season, added a career-high 19 Monday as the Golden State Warriors scored the game's final nine points to secure a 104-97 victory against the Los Angeles Clippers.

David Lee had 24 points and 13 rebounds for the Warriors, who won for only the fourth time this season in 13 instances where the teams were within three points of each other during the final 90 seconds.

Chris Paul (24), Mo Williams (22) and Blake Griffin (21) all had more than 20 points, but Los Angeles was undone by its inability to score in the final 3:15 after Williams' fadeaway jumper gave the Clippers a 97-95 lead, their last of the game.

QUOTABLE: "The way he's played the last month or so has been great, and tonight was the icing on the cake. He was spectacular tonight."
-- Warriors head coach Mark Jackson on Udoh.

THE STAT: The Clippers went 0-6 from the field with one critical turnover down the stretch, unable to come up with a single point while the game was still up for grabs. It would have been Los Angeles' ninth road win of the season, matching the club's total from the entire 2010-11 campaign, when the Clippers went 9-32 as the visitors.

TURNING POINT: The last of Udoh's career-high six offensive rebounds came with 2:21 left, and it set up the Warriors to take the lead for good 14 seconds later when Brandon Rush drained a 3-pointer to put Golden State up 98-97. The Warriors scored six more points to ice the game.

FANTASY SPOTLIGHT: Udoh was plugged into the starting lineup after Andris Biedrins showed up for the Warriors' morning shootaround suffering from "flu-like symptoms," and the second-year product of Baylor made the most of it. Udoh thoroughly outplayed Los Angeles center DeAndre Jordan -- the man whom the Warriors signed to a four-year, $43 million offer sheet this offseason, only to see the Clippers match it -- and was plus-13 on the evening before leaving the game with 1:23 remaining due to a sprained left knee.

QUOTABLE II: "The way (Udoh) played tonight, he gives us something totally different. I will take my time and assess our basketball team and we'll move forward. He certainly is a guy that, when the opportunity presented itself, played well enough to demand more minutes."
-- Jackson, on whether or not Udoh or Biedrins will start at center in the future.

HOT: After a woeful first three quarters, the Warriors' bench came alive in the fourth quarter. Rush and Nate Robinson combined for 14 points on 5-for-9 shooting, critical production on a night where Stephen Curry's offensive contributions were muted (11 points, six assists).

NOT: The Clippers had 18 turnovers on the evening and shot just 37.5 percent in the second half, numbers that would eventually doom them. The exclamation point came with Los Angeles trailing 100-97. Warriors forward Dominic McGuire, coming on in place of Udoh after the latter's injury, went toe-to-toe with Paul and didn't bite on a single fake, eventually outwaiting the five-time All-Star and snuffing out Paul's pull-up jumper at the right elbow.

QUOTABLE III: "We got into lockdown mode; we made life tough. When you play great defense, teams can score, but we buckled down and closed out the game the way good teams do."
-- Jackson.

INSIDE THE ARENA: The Clippers were incensed at the end of the first half with a couple of decisions by the refereeing crew of Derrick Stafford, Matt Boland and J.T. Orr. With the Warriors deliberately hacking Jordan (who came in shooting 48.7 percent from the line), Paul threw up a half-court shot at the 37.9 second mark that swished through the net, but it was ruled to have come after the whistle was blown on Dorell Wright's off-the-ball foul against Jordan. On the Clippers' next trip downcourt, Paul launched another long 3-pointer as Wright once gave Jordan an obvious two-handed shove -- but no call was forthcoming, and Udoh nailed a jumper on the ensuing possession. Both Paul and head coach Vinny Del Negro had a long chat with Stafford after the halftime buzzer sounded.

NOTABLE: This was Ellis' ninth career 30-point game, and his third in his last six contests. His four-point play in the first quarter was the Warriors' first since he did it against New Orleans on Jan. 26, 2011. . . . Lee now has 17 double-doubles. . . . Reggie Evans led the Clippers with 12 boards off the bench.

UP NEXT: For the Warriors, Wednesday @ Phoenix, Tuesday @ Indiana, Wednesday @ Atlanta. For the Clippers, Wednesday vs. Denver, Tuesday vs. Minnesota, Thursday @ Sacramento.

• Clippers: Billups
• Warriors: Brown

• Clippers: Martin
• Warriors: Curry

• Lead Changes: 19
• Times Tied: 14

• Arena: ORACLE Arena, Oakland, CA
• Officials: #9 Derrick Stafford, #18 Matt Boland, #72 JT Orr
• Attendance: 19596
• Duration: 2:21