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"I just felt good," said George, who has been
dealing with a lingering foot issue. "My foot felt good today. I
felt explosive. I just came out trying to attack, come out score
and finish."
Los Angeles upped its record to 4-2 on a nine-game homestand.
The Clippers started the game making their first nine shots.
L.A. also got a boost from the return of point guard Patrick
Beverley to the starting lineup. Beverley had been out since
March 11, missing 12 games with right knee soreness.
Beverley finished with eight points, four rebounds, three
assists and a steal in 20 minutes of work. Clippers coach Tyronn
Lue had Beverley on a minutes restriction in his first game back
from injury.
Los Angeles' Kawhi Leonard had a solid all-around game,
finishing with 29 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists. Reggie
Jackson added 23 points off the bench.
The Clippers' reserves outscored Portland's bench 44-21.
Versatile big man DeMarcus Cousins, recently released by the
Houston Rockets, joined the Clippers on to a 10-day contract,
giving L.A. some size up front with Serge Ibaka still nursing a
lower back injury. Cousins made his Clippers debut, finishing
with seven points and four rebounds in eight minutes.
While the Clippers led big early, the Blazers chipped away at
L.A.'s lead and only trailed 73-66 at the half. Portland used
the free-throw line to work back into the game, with the Blazers
making 16 of 21 shots from the line in the first half.
Norman Powell paced the Blazers with 32 points. CJ McCollum
added 24 points, while Robert Covington finished with 15 points
and nine rebounds.
The Clippers did a good job defensively of keeping Damian
Lillard from getting to the basket. Lillard shot just 2 of 14
from the field and wound up with just 11 points.
Showing his frustration, Lillard received a technical foul for
arguing a non-call on a drive to the basket.
"Dame is always an MVP candidate in my eyes because of the
things he does, the things he brings every single night," Lue
said. "He plays every single night. He wants to play and he
wants to compete. He's one of the top players in the league."
The Blazers managed to cut L.A.'s advantage to two points midway
through the third quarter but would not get any closer the rest
of the way. The Clippers upped their lead back to double digits
in the fourth and led comfortably the rest of the game.
The Blazers had to play without Jusuf Nurkic, who experienced
right knee inflammation after playing in back-to-back games on
Friday and Saturday. Enes Kanter started in place of Nurkic,
finishing with 13 points and 15 rebounds.
Nurkic attended the game and was on the bench for the Blazers.
After the road loss, the Blazers now travel to Utah to face the
Jazz on Thursday and then return to Portland for three home
games against the Detroit Pistons, Miami Heat and Boston
Celtics.
--Field Level Media
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