Lakers-Clippers Preview

By NICOLINO DIBENEDETTO
Posted Apr 04 2012 2:47AM

The Los Angeles Lakers may be atop the Pacific Division, but the Los Angeles Clippers are surging behind their longest winning streak in two decades.

The Clippers look to draw closer to the Lakers by winning the season series for the first time in 19 years on Wednesday night.

The Lakers (34-20) have won 11 of 15 and lead the division by 1 1/2 games over the Clippers (32-21). However, the Clippers are mounting a run at their much more heralded co-tenant, winning six in a row for their longest streak since March 18-31, 1992.

They also put together an eight-game run that season from Nov. 30-Dec. 15, 1991.

Getting closer to that mark will require winning the season series from the Lakers for the first time since 1992-93.

The city rivals have split two meetings this season with each winning at home, including the Clippers' 102-94 victory on Jan. 14.

The Clippers are eager to prove they belong among the Western Conference's elite after cruising to a 94-75 victory at Dallas on Monday.

"A win like this shows that we're growing," guard Randy Foye said. "It means a lot to play this well and beat the champs."

Foye is making a surprising impact on the Clippers, averaging 21.7 points the last three games after scoring a season-high 28 against the Mavericks. He hit a personal- and team-record eight 3-pointers while Blake Griffin and Chris Paul were held to 15 and eight points, respectively.

"We got him in some rhythm," coach Vinny Del Negro said of Foye, who is averaging 10.1 points this season. "They went zone, they lost him a few times on that left wing. They load up so much on Chris (Paul) and Blake (Griffin)."

Foye hasn't found the same success against the Lakers in 2011-12, making 4 of 20 from the field - 2 of 8 from beyond the arc - for 15 points.

Griffin has been much better with 48 total points and 23 rebounds in the two matchups, while Paul scored 33 in the Jan. 14 win. The point guard didn't come close to being that effective Jan. 25, scoring four points on 2-of-8 shooting in a 96-91 loss.

The Lakers would like to create some breathing room in their quest for a fifth straight division crown.

They squandered a 17-point lead in Tuesday's 91-87 win over New Jersey before Kobe Bryant made a 3-pointer with 6.8 seconds left. Bryant scored five of his 24 points in the final 71 seconds.

"We feel as a group that when we do get a double-digit lead, we tend to relax a little bit," coach Mike Brown said. "The other team, they're going to amp it up, take chances and be more physical. Next thing you know, it's a three-point game."

Bryant, the league leader with 28.0 points per game, has totaled 66 points in two season meetings with the Clippers, including 42 on Jan. 14. The All-Star guard is averaging 31.5 points over the last four meetings when the Lakers are the visiting team at Staples Center.

Bryant could get some scoring help if Andrew Bynum is available. The center didn't play against the Nets, and Brown would only say that the club had handled an internal matter. He refused to comment on a report the Lakers had fined Bynum for a series of minor disciplinary transgressions.

Bynum, averaging 17.9 points and a team-best 11.9 rebounds, also sprained his left ankle early in Sunday's 120-112 win over Golden State.

Lakers beat Clippers 113-108

By BETH HARRIS
Posted Apr 05 2012 2:48AM

LOS ANGELES (AP) Kobe Bryant willed the Los Angeles Lakers to a crucial victory over the Clippers, who won style points with some flashy plays but couldn't overcome a well-rested Andrew Bynum.

Bynum scored 36 points after missing a game with a sprained left ankle, Bryant added 31 and the Lakers won 113-108 on Wednesday night to widen their Pacific Division lead to 2 1/2 games over the second-place Clippers. The Lakers also snapped the Clippers' winning streak at six, the franchise's best in 20 years.

"Kobe didn't want to lose," Bynum said. "We are fighting for a playoff spot. They are one game behind us, so we had to get this win."

By taking two out of three against their Staples Center co-tenants, the Lakers also earned the head-to-head tiebreaker in a game that could help decide the division winner and playoff seeding in the West. The division winner will likely earn the No. 3 seed behind Oklahoma City and San Antonio.

"They're going to make spectacular plays, but we talked about playing poised and composed," Bryant said. "They have so many weapons. But it's not any different than some of the other top teams that we face in the league. The crowd obviously gave them a lot of energy and their bench gave them a lot of energy, but we maintained our composure and made big plays."

Former Laker Caron Butler scored 28 points to lead six Clippers in double figures. Chris Paul added 22 points and 16 assists, Blake Griffin had 15 points and 14 rebounds, and DeAndre Jordan had 11 points and 13 rebounds for the West's fourth-place team, the designated home team in this matchup.

"Ain't no moral victories around here," Paul said. "They won the game and that's that."

Ramon Sessions added 16 points and eight assists for the Lakers, who won their fourth in a row.

"We miscommunicated a lot of times, worried about Kobe a little too much and we were giving up layups to Sessions," Paul said.

Bynum bounced back with an offensive performance that was one point off his season high after injuring his ankle Sunday and running afoul of the front office with some questionable on-court behavior.

"It hurts a little bit, especially on spin moves," Bynum said. "I found more little things out there that hurt so I tried to stay away from them. As the game progresses, the pain subsides."

With the Lakers clinging to a two-point lead, Bryant hit a jumper over Randy Foye to make it 110-106 with 24 seconds left. Paul missed a jumper and Griffin was called for a loose ball foul on Pau Gasol, who made one of two free throws with 18 seconds left.

"Both teams really wanted it," former Clipper and current Laker Steve Blake said. "It was physical and both teams were changing their game plans on the fly and it was fun to be out there."

Griffin's tip drew the Clippers within three, but Nick Young fouled Matt Barnes, who made both free throws. Paul's turnover and foul gave the Lakers the ball with 4 seconds to go, ending the Clippers' chances to win the season series for the first in 19 years.

"Our defense wasn't as good as we'd like it to be and that was part of the problem," Paul said. "We sort of gave up everything. They had 63 in the first half. Kobe was shooting a lot early. He had it going and so did Bynum."

The Clippers trailed by 11 to start the fourth and scored the first eight points to get to 92-89. Young had nine of their first 12 points. Eric Bledsoe hit a 3-pointer to get the Clippers to 98-96. The final 7 minutes were a four-point game.

Paul's jumper tied it at 102 and the Clippers took their first lead, 104-103, since early in the game on Jordan's hook.

Bryant scored over Butler and then Metta World Peace stole the ball from Paul. Bynum got fouled and made one of two free throws to put the Lakers back in front, 106-104. After consecutive turnovers by both teams, Sessions scored on a driving layup with 47 seconds left to keep the Lakers ahead by four.

"We had a couple key turnovers and they made the bigger plays at the end of the game," said Paul, who had two of the Clippers' four turnovers in the final 2:45. "We got to learn how to win these games and close these out. It was a good learning process for us because this is how the playoffs are."

The Lakers led 73-61 early in the third quarter. The Clippers rallied on a 12-5 run that cut their deficit to five points. Griffin soared to dunk one-handed over Gasol, who argued that Griffin had fouled him with the monster move that sent Gasol staggering toward the floor. But Griffin drew the foul and missed the free throw.

"I really didn't see the ball when it went in. I was on my (rear)," Gasol said. "It happened too quick. I don't have a great desire to watch it (again)."

Griffin hoped it would give the Clippers some much-needed momentum.

"It was exciting," Paul said, "but at the end of the day we lost. Who cares?"

Jordan dunked to reinvigorate the crowd and Butler scored the final five points in the spurt.

But the Lakers answered with a 14-8 run to end the third up 92-78. Bynum had seven points and Bryant six.

"It looked like his ankle wasn't giving him any problems," Griffin said.

Jordan made a great play after trying to save the ball from going out of bounds with a leap over the courtside seats. His save got intercepted by the Lakers, but he climbed back over the seats and took off running. He dashed up behind Sessions and poked the ball away, leading to a 3-pointer by Butler to end the third.

NOTES: The Clippers' seven-game home winning streak ended. ... There were 11 technicals in the teams' first two meetings, but there was just one individual technical against Sessions. ... Foye came in averaging 21.6 points and 3.3 assists in the Clippers' last three games, but he finished with 11 points and four assists. ... The Lakers improved to 12-15 on the road. ... The Clippers fell to 19-13 against teams with .500 or better records.

Notebook: Clippers 113, Lakers 108

Posted Thursday April 5, 2012 2:21AM

By Dan Arritt, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: The Clippers closed the gap on the Lakers again Wednesday night, spurred by another spectacular slam dunk by Blake Griffin. But the Lakers showed which team still controls L.A., getting a combined 67 points from Andrew Bynum and Kobe Bryant in the 113-108 victory at Staples Center.

THE STAT: The Lakers have won four games in five days at Staples Center and Bryant had a big basket down the stretch in every victory. He sank a 21-foot fade-away jumper from the baseline with 24 seconds remaining to give the Lakers a four-point lead against the Clippers. Against the Nets the night before, he hit a 3-pointer with 10 seconds left to give his team a four-point lead. On Sunday against the Warriors, he made a 3-point basket with 1:39 remaining for a six-point lead, and Saturday afternoon against the Hornets sank a 3-pointer with 20 seconds left for a one-point lead.

QUOTABLE: "We got the W ... [Griffin] can have the highlight."
-- Lakers center Bynum of Griffin's slam dunk.

TURNING POINT: The Lakers let another sizable lead get away late in the game. They led by 14 points in the final minute of the third quarter, but the Clippers finally got some stops and went on an 11-0 run to cut the deficit to three with 10 minutes left in the game. They hurt themselves with turnovers and bad shot selections but finally took their first lead since the first quarter, 104-103, on a jump hook by DeAndre Jordan with 3:30 left. Bryant immediately answered with a jumper to re-take the lead, and Ramon Sessions stretched it to four points on a driving layup with 47 seconds left. Chris Paul cut it back to two on a short jumper, leading to Bryant's big shot from the corner.

HOT: Bryant let everyone know it was his night from the start, scoring 16 points in the opening quarter before finishing with 31 on 13-for-19 shooting. Bynum, who missed Tuesday's game against Golden State with a sprained left ankle, also established himself early, scoring 11 of his team-high 36 points in the first quarter and finishing 13-for-20 from the field with four blocked shots. For the Clippers, small forward Caron Butler carried the team for the first three quarters before finishing with a season-high 28 points on 9-for-18 from the floor. He had a costly turnover with 59 seconds left in the game, however.

NOT: After turning the ball over just three times through the first three quarters, the Clippers committed seven in the fourth, leading to seven of the 21 points for the Lakers.

GOOD MOVE: Just writing about Griffin's latest power dunk doesn't seem to do it justice. This thing is best viewed in slow motion. Trailing by nine with 7:55 left in the third quarter, Paul and Griffin worked a pick-and-roll to perfection, leaving Griffin one on with just Lakers forward Pau Gasol between him and the rim. Gasol rose up to block the shot, but Griffin rose much higher, getting extra leverage with his forearm pushing off the side of Gasol's face. Griffin hammered the ball through the rim as Gasol fell flat on his back, then stood over the fallen Laker for a brief second before he was pushed away by Jordan.

BAD MOVE: After the Clippers cut the deficit to three points early in the fourth quarter and had all the momentum, they made several bad decisions that kept them from advancing. On back-to-back defensive stops, they turned the ball over before getting it past mid-court, then Eric Bledsoe badly missed an out-of-control layup attempt with 7:16 remaining, allowing Bynum to score on a cherry-picking dunk on the other end to push the lead back to five.

QUOTABLE II: "Our turnovers hurt us in the second half, that's for sure,"
-- Clippers head coach Vinny Del Negro.

NOTABLE: The Clippers have scored at least 20 points in 25 of last 27 quarters ... The Lakers have won by 10 points or more only once since March 1 ... Paul finished with 22 points and 16 assists, but the Clippers fell to 23-6 when he scores 17 or more... The Lakers improved to 18-14 against teams with a .500 record or better. The Clippers fell to 19-13.

UP NEXT: For the Clippers, Thursday @ Sacramento, Saturday vs. Sacramento, Monday @ Memphis. For the Lakers, Friday vs. Houston, Saturday @ Phoenix, Monday @ New Orleans.

• Lakers: Eyenga
• Clippers: Billups, Leslie

• Lakers: Sessions
• Clippers: --

• Lead Changes: 4
• Times Tied: 4

• Arena: Staples Center, Los Angeles, CA
• Officials: #8 Marc Davis, #71 Rodney Mott, #31 Scott Wall
• Attendance: 19819
• Duration: 2:30