Raptors-Clippers Preview

By JORDAN GARRETSON
Posted Dec 08 2012 10:20PM

The Los Angeles Clippers' starters haven't always performed up to par recently.

It hasn't mattered thanks to their bench.

The surging Clippers seek their sixth straight win on Sunday at the expense of the Toronto Raptors, whom they've beaten 12 consecutive times.

Los Angeles (13-6) has assembled a group of skilled scorers that extends beyond its first five. During the Clippers' five-game win streak, the starters are averaging 62.0 points compared to 59.6 for the opponents' starters, and the team has totaled at least 100 in each game.

The big advantage comes from their reserves, who have averaged 48.2 points during this run and outscored their counterparts by 14.0 per game. That group again came through on Friday when Jamal Crawford scored 21 off the bench and the Clippers won 117-99 over Phoenix.

They couldn't build a lead of more than seven points until the fourth quarter, when the reserves keyed a 17-4 run to blow open the game.

Thirteen of Crawford's points came in the fourth and he hit all four of his free throws, extending his streak to 55 consecutive made free throws dating back to Nov. 3.

The Clippers' bench is averaging 40.7 points - one of the NBA's best marks.

"We owed them a lot," Blake Griffin said of the reserves. Griffin finished with 24 points and a career-high four steals.

"We want to put it away early, but with the way that our team is put together, our second team is just as capable of coming and putting that lead on teams."

More impressive is that Los Angeles' rotation isn't at full strength. Lamar Odom continues to get into shape, having recently lost 12 pounds. He tallied eight points and eight rebounds in 20 minutes of action on Friday.

Chauncey Billups has missed two straight games with an inflamed tendon in his left foot. He already missed the season's first 14 games because of the torn left Achilles he suffered on Feb. 6, and the Clippers are uncertain when he will return.

"It's frustrating, of course, working that hard to come back and have to kind of sit back and wait," Billups told the team's official website. "I know what it is. I respect the process and I'm not down at all."

The Raptors (4-16) have struggled all season, particularly on the road where they're 1-12. Their 131-99 loss at Utah on Friday was their third straight and ninth in 10 games.

The Clippers high-scoring attack (102.3 ppg) could give Toronto all sorts of problems. The Raptors are at the bottom of the league, giving up 103.6 ppg.

They allowed the Jazz to hit 13 of their 23 3-point attempts on Friday, and opponents are hitting 39.5 percent from beyond the arc.

"We gave in to the altitude or whatever it was," coach Dwane Casey said. "I thought we split apart and didn't stay together. Tonight is the first time I have seen us give in."

Los Angeles won last year's meeting, 103-91.

Clippers beat Raptors 102-83 for 6th straight win

By BETH HARRIS
Posted Dec 09 2012 7:11PM

LOS ANGELES (AP) The Los Angeles Clippers were lacking energy through three quarters. Their backups came in and changed the game again.

Jamal Crawford led a fourth-quarter rally by the reserves with 16 points and the Clippers defeated Toronto 102-83 on Sunday to win their sixth in a row while handing the Raptors their 10th consecutive road loss.

The backups gave Los Angeles its first double-digit lead of the game after Toronto kept it close through the first three periods before dropping its fourth straight and 10th in its last 11. The Raptors have just four wins this season.

Eric Bledsoe added 14 points on his 23rd birthday to help the Clippers' reserves outscore their counterparts 47-24.

Blake Griffin led the Clippers with 19 points. Chris Paul added 16 points and DeAndre Jordan had 10 rebounds. Caron Butler was the only starter to play in the fourth, coming in only after Matt Barnes was ejected with 1:36 to play.

Los Angeles' reserves dominated the final period for the third straight game, turning Griffin and Paul into cheerleaders.

"As long as I've been in the league, through 20 games I've never played this least amount of minutes," Paul said. "I should have no arguments about being tired. I'm also enjoying cheering on guys out there playing. We like to see each other succeed."

Each one of the 10 Clippers who played had at least one basket, including Ronny Turiaf, who had six points and roared after one dunk.

"With two or three minutes to go, he was out there dancing and then went and got a rebound and a dunk. It keeps everybody loose," Griffin said. "To be able to sit the whole fourth quarter is something I've never experienced."

Crawford's streak of consecutive free throws ended at 58 when he missed two late in the second quarter for his first errant foul shots since Nov. 3.

Toronto's DeMar DeRozan scored 24 points in his hometown. Linas Kleiza, who started in place of injured Mickael Pietrus, added 17 points, including five 3-pointers. Amir Johnson had 11 points and 12 rebounds.

"It came out of nowhere," DeRozan said of the Clippers' surge. "We just didn't score and we couldn't get any stops, and they took advantage of it. They're the deepest team in the league. They've got a lot of talented players that are capable of being starters in this league. They don't go outside their element and try to do too much."

Los Angeles outscored the Raptors 25-10 in the fourth, led by Bledsoe with 10 points. The Raptors managed one field goal over the final nine minutes.

"That's all defense," Crawford said. "Whenever you get a team stagnant and they can't score, it's defense."

Barnes and John Lucas tangled on the baseline and were called for double technicals after Crawford missed a 3-pointer. Referees dragged Barnes away and both players were ejected, bringing Butler back in.

"They locked in on defense and we stopped moving the ball from side to side, which was the key for us in the first three quarters," said Andrea Bargnani, who had 12 points for the Raptors. "They ran the floor, which is what they do, and we let them do that."

Los Angeles led for much of a back-and-forth third, with its biggest margin of six points coming on a basket by Paul. The Raptors got timely 3-pointers from Kleiza and DeRozan, who had 11 points in the period. The Clippers were 9 of 15 from the free throw line.

"That's one of the most talented teams in the league, but I thought our defense was on par in the first half until the middle part of the third quarter, when I thought it went south," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said. "We knew it was a matter of time before Crawford and those guys were going to get going, so we wanted to make it tough on them. We did, but you've got to do it for 48 minutes."

The Clippers' second unit sparked a 15-11 stretch to start the second quarter and extend their lead to 40-32. Griffin, Paul and Jordan then returned only to be outscored 15-4, and Toronto carried a 47-44 advantage into halftime. The Clippers shot just 36 percent in the half, when their largest lead was eight.

Los Angeles opened the game by outscoring the Raptors 17-10, but Toronto closed within four by the end of the first quarter.

NOTES: Pietrus didn't play because of left knee tendinitis that flared up after Friday's loss in Utah. ... Clippers G Chauncey Billups missed his third straight game with tendinitis in his left ankle. He said he hopes to play on the team's upcoming four-game trip. ... Toronto general manager Bryan Colangelo held a series of one-on-one meetings with players and coaching staff on Saturday night to discuss the team's downward spiral. ... The Raptors fell to 0-13 when giving up more than 100 points.

Notebook: Clippers 102, Raptors 83

Dan Arritt, for NBA.com
Posted Sun Dec 09, 2012 7:31 PM - Updated Sun Dec 09, 2012 7:54 PM

THE FACTS: For the second consecutive day, the Clippers sent their reserves onto the floor at the start of the fourth quarter, hoping they'd protect a narrow lead long enough for the starters to catch their breath. And for the second consecutive day the reserves made sure the starters were no longer needed. Jamal Crawford and Eric Bledsoe once again teamed with Lamar Odom, Matt Barnes and Ronny Turiaf to slam the door against another struggling opponent, this time resulting in a 102-83 victory Sunday afternoon against the visiting Raptors at Staples Center.

THE STAT: On Saturday afternoon, it was the Suns who trailed by two points to start the fourth quarter, only to watch L.A.'s bench finish the game on a 32-16 run, handing Phoenix its sixth consecutive defeat. This time, it was the Raptors who trailed by four at the start of the fourth, but then seemed helpless to stop the Clippers' reserves as they outscored the visitors, 25-10, over the final 12 minutes. Toronto went 6:44 without a point before scoring with 19 seconds left in the game, solidifying its 11th loss in the last 12 games.

QUOTABLE: "I think the bench performed well and they deserved to be out there, but that is not always going to be the case and everyone's got to be ready to play."
-- Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro.

TURNING POINT: The Raptors were still within two points after DeMar DeRozan scored with 9:06 left in the game, but then the wheels began turning for the Clippers. After making one of two free throws, Bledsoe stole a pass and scored on a breakaway dunk for an 84-79 lead. Crawford then sank two free throws and Bledsoe followed with a pull-up jumper, extending the lead to 88-80. Barnes then sank a 3-pointer to give the Clippers their biggest lead of the game, 91-80, and they were well on their way to their second six-game winning streak of the season.

HOT: Crawford has been the tip of the sword down the stretch for the Clippers this season. He came in averaging a league-leading 8.2 points in the fourth quarter, a number that was further padded by his 13-point effort in the fourth quarter against the Suns. Against the Raptors, however, Crawford took a back seat to Bledsoe, who scored 10 of his 14 points in the final quarter, connecting on all four of his field-goal attempts and contributing three assists and two steals down the stretch.

QUOTABLE II: "[Bledsoe] just makes things happen. He gets his hands on a lot of balls; he gets out on the break. On the pick and roll he's tough because he can just turn the corner on a lot of people."
-- Del Negro.

NOT: Toronto point guard Kyle Lowry came into the game as the second-leading scorer for the Raptors (17.7), tied for the lead in rebounds (5.5) and second in assists (5.9). He never got untracked as a scorer against the Clippers, however, finishing with four points, six rebounds, nine assists and five turnovers in 32 minutes.

GOOD MOVE: During the decisive fourth-quarter run and before his ejection, Barnes made a smooth behind-the-back pass to Turiaf as he cut toward the basket a step ahead of Amir Johnson. Turiaf collected the pass and slammed it through the hoop for a 93-80 lead.

BAD MOVE: The Clippers nearly completed their third consecutive game without playing their starters in the fourth quarter, but Barnes was ejected after getting into a shoving match with John Lucas with 1:36 remaining in the game. Caron Butler was then called upon to finish out the game.

NOTABLE: After making a club record 58 consecutive free throws, Crawford missed two straight late in the second quarter. Interestingly, the streak began after he missed two straight against Golden State earlier this season. Crawford did manage to convert the 35th four-point play of his career with five minutes left in the game, extending his NBA record. ... Toronto small forward Mickael Pietrus did not play because of tendinitis in his left knee. Linas Kleiza started in his place and finished with 17 points, converting 5-of-6 from 3-point range.

UP NEXT: For the Clippers, Tuesday @ Chicago, Wednesday @ Charlotte, Saturday @ Milwaukee. For the Raptors, Monday @ Portland, Wednesday vs. Brooklyn, Friday vs. Dallas.

• Raptors: Acy, Anderson, Fields
• Clippers: Billups, Hill, Thompkins

• Raptors: Kleiza, Lucas III
• Clippers: Barnes, Jordan

• Lead Changes: 7
• Times Tied: 8

• Arena: Staples Center, Los Angeles, CA
• Officials: #28 Zach Zarba, #72 JT Orr, #59 Gary Zielinski
• Attendance: 19060
• Duration: 2:14