LDN - Sports

Clippers beat Magic for 5th consecutive win

[January 12, 2017] LOS ANGELES -- The Los Angeles Clippers extended the woes of the Orlando Magic on Wednesday night.

J.J. Redick scored 22 points and the Clippers won their fifth in a row with a 105-96 victory over the Magic at Staples Center.

Chris Paul contributed 18 points, seven rebounds and six assists.

"I think right now we're playing with the right spirit, playing with a lot of energy and we just got to keep piling up wins," said Paul, who also recorded four steals.

DeAndre Jordan collected 20 rebounds and 10 points for the Clippers (27-14). Jordan grabbed 20 or more boards in a game for the sixth time this season, which leads the NBA.

Aaron Gordon scored 28 points on 11-of-17 shooting, including 4 of 7 from long distance for the Magic (16-24), who lost their fourth straight and the sixth out of their last seven contests.

"It's pretty frustrating," said Gordon, who scored 16 points in the first quarter by hitting his first six shots. "This is a game we should have won by the way we played."

Nikola Vucevic added 16 points and 12 rebounds for the Magic, who lost to the Clippers for the seventh consecutive time. Orlando's Jodie Meeks came off the bench to score 14 points.

The Magic's inability to earn stops and some empty possessions on offense in the game's final three minutes cost them.

"We have to have a defensive identity," Magic coach Frank Vogel said. "We have to rely on our defense, and that can carry you when shots are not going. We are continuing to try to establish that, but it hasn't taken shape yet."

The Magic played without forward Serge Ibaka, who suffered a sprained right shoulder in Sunday's loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.

The Magic made a run late, but couldn't sustain it. They pulled within 98-94 after a bucket by Vucevic with 1:39 remaining, but a jumper by Redick and a 3-pointer by Paul gave Los Angeles a nine-point advantage with 49.8 seconds remaining. That sealed it for the Clippers.

The Clippers' bench played a key role with reserve forward Marreesse Speights leading the way with 13 fourth-quarter points. The Clippers' reserves produced 22 of the team's 32 points in the period. They also snatched the lead from Orlando and extended it to seven before handing it over to the starters, who held off the Magic down the stretch.

"Our bench was amazing," Paul said. To start the fourth, Jamal (Crawford) got fouled on a 3. That was big, and then we started getting some stops. (Speights) got an and one, but overall it's huge to come back into the game with somewhat of a lead to finish it off."

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Both teams began the third quarter with sluggish play. However, the Magic picked up the pace near the end of the period and outscored the Clippers 24-17 for 75-73 edge heading into the final quarter.

Los Angeles used a 16-6 spurt to finish the first half for a 56-51 lead at the break. Despite committing 11 first-half turnovers (leading to 13 points) to six miscues (resulting in eight points) for the Magic, the Clippers took advantage of the Orlando's second-quarter shooting woes.

The Magic managed just 29.2 percent from the floor and missed all eight of their 3-pointers in the quarter. The Clippers shot 50 percent.

For the game, the Clippers converted 51.3 percent of their shots to 42.4 for the Magic. The Clippers had 21 turnovers overall (24 points) to 13 (18 points) for Orlando.

Despite that, a steady dose of defense usually can cure what sometimes ails an offense.

"I think that we are doing a pretty good job on both ends so far," said Jordan, who hauled down eight offensive rebounds to only six for Orlando's entire lineup. "Personally, I'm just trying to keep the ball alive and get us extra possessions on the offensive end."

Clippers guard Austin Rivers returned after a one-game absence due to flu. Rivers finished with nine points and five assists.

NOTES: Clippers F Blake Griffin (right knee surgery) "looks great" and has increased his workout load, according to coach Doc Rivers. Rivers didn't give a return date for Griffin, who has missed 13 games since undergoing a procedure on his knee on Dec. 20. The club said at the time he would be out four to six weeks. ... Kevin Garnett, who was hired by the Clippers as a consultant during training camp, is currently working with C DeAndre Jordan to help improve Jordan's offensive game. ... Orlando is 6-0 when shooting 50 percent or better from the floor. ... The Magic visit the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday. ... The Clippers will be the home team when they face the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday.

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