|
 That is not a good thing when the Wizards provide the opposition,
but it is a whole different story when the Los Angeles Clippers come
to town.
The Warriors used a 12-2 burst early in the second quarter to open a
19-point lead, then blew the game open by holding the Clippers to a
franchise-worst one field goal in the third period en route to a
111-92 thrashing of the Pacific Division leaders Thursday night.
By beating the Clippers for the second time this season, Golden
State (28-19) put a happy ending on a five-game homestand that
featured losses to the Indiana Pacers, Minnesota Timberwolves and
Washington plus a win over the Portland Trail Blazers.
"I wish we had it figured out to do it every single game because
that effort wasn't there last game," Warriors power forward David
Lee said in comparing Thursday's win with Tuesday's 88-85 loss to
the Wizards. "It's just frustrating to know we have the talent in
this locker room to be better. That's what makes the Washington game
really frustrating."
The wins on the homestand came against teams with the second-best
record (Portland) and fourth-best record in the Western Conference.
"We need to figure out a way to play like we did tonight and like we
did against Portland more consistently," said Lee, who shared
game-high scoring honors for the Warriors, finishing with 22 points.
"We've got to bring it to Utah (on Friday night)."
All-Star point guard Stephen Curry (22 points) joined Lee and four
other Warriors in double figures. Golden State got 29 points from
the league's least productive bench while easily disposing of a
tired Clippers club.
"What I liked about tonight was that we set the tone early and
battled," Warriors coach Mark Jackson said. "That's a pretty good
basketball team with a lot of weapons. That was a quality win for
us."
Shooting guard Klay Thompson (16 points), center Andrew Bogut (14),
backup big man Marreese Speights (12) and reserve forward Harrison
Barnes (10) made solid contributions for the Warriors.
Bogut (17 rebounds) and Lee (11) both recorded double-doubles.
"It hasn't been a happy place around here," Bogut said. "A lot of
guys are edgy right now, not in great moods because we haven't been
playing good basketball. We responded well."
The Clippers (33-16) won each of their previous four games, but they
did so over a six-day stretch leading into Thursday's contest.
They had one big run in them in their fifth game in seven nights,
cutting a 54-35 deficit to 62-56 shortly before halftime. Shooting
guard J.J. Redick sank two 3-pointers in the comeback.
The Clippers, down by eight at the half, came back from the break as
flat as they were to start the game, watching Golden State run off
to a 90-67 lead from which Los Angeles could not recover. The
visitors missed 14 of 15 shots in the third period.
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"We couldn't make a shot," Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. "It was
one of those nights. Bad night for us, good night for Golden State."
Redick had the Clippers' only basket of the third quarter, a
3-pointer that came 6:23 into the period. Getting six points from
Lee, the Warriors turned a 64-56 halftime advantage into an 80-58
blowout by that point.
"It was a tough game coming into it. We knew that," Rivers said of
the busy schedule. "I told the coaches before (the Washington game
on Wednesday) that if we can win one of these two, I'd be very
happy. We just didn't have it. We had nothing."
The Clippers beat the Wizards 110-103 on Wednesday at Staples
Center.
All-Star power forward Blake Griffin had 27 points Thursday for the
Clippers, who lost for the 15th time in their past 17 visits to
Oakland. Griffin scored 20 of his points in the first half.
Point guard Darren Collison added a season-high 22 points, and
Redick scored 12 on four 3-pointers in the losing effort. Center
DeAndre Jordan grabbed 20 rebounds to complement nine points.
The game featured none of the extracurriculars that marred Golden
State's 105-103 home win over the Clippers on Christmas night. That
contest included two ejections, two flagrant fouls and three
technical fouls.
The Warriors never trailed Thursday, jumping out to an 11-point lead
in the first quarter behind a combined 16 points and 10 rebounds
from frontcourt mates Lee and Bogut.
Golden State's reserves, led by Barnes, Speights and guard Jordan
Crawford, contributed 18 second-quarter points as the Warriors built
as much as a 19-point lead.
Los Angeles got as close as six before halftime but never closer
than eight in the second half.
NOTES: Los Angeles PF Blake Griffin was held to a season-low three
rebounds as the Clippers lost the battle of the boards 53-34. ...
Clippers C DeAndre Jordan (.647) and Warriors C Andrew Bogut (.640)
began the night Nos. 1 and 2 in the league in field-goal percentage,
and each improved his mark. Jordan went 3-for-4, Bogut 7-for-11. ...
Bogut recorded three blocked shots, his sixth consecutive game with
at least two. ... Clippers PG Chris Paul was selected by the coaches
to be among the seven Western Conference All-Star reserves for the
Feb. 16 game in New Orleans. Paul currently is out of action with a
separated shoulder. ... The Warriors are assured of having at least
two representatives in New Orleans. PG Stephen Curry was voted by
the fans into a starting spot for the West in the All-Star Game,
while reserve SF Harrison Barnes was picked to participate in the
Rising Stars Challenge on Feb. 14.
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