The Los Angeles Clippers were playing without their game-7 hero on Monday night, as Chris Paul sat out with a hamstring injury. Blake Griffin took over, recording his third triple-double of the playoffs to lead the Clippers past the Houston Rockets 117-101 in game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals.
Griffin led six double-digit scorers for Los Angeles in the win, finishing with 26 points, 14 rebounds, and 13 assists for his second straight triple-double. After the Rockets scored 5 straight points to cut the lead to one, Matt Barnes hit two three-pointers to kick off a 12-0 run to help the Clippers pull away.
Barnes finished the night with 20 points, while Jamal Crawford added 21 in relief of the injured CP3, who missed his first game of the season.
Dwight Howard paced the Rockets with 22 points, while James Harden added 20 but had 9 of the team's 23 turnovers in the loss. The Rockets were playing following a 6-day layoff after taking out the Dallas Mavericks in 5 games. The Clippers had just 48 hours to prepare after taking down the San Antonio Spurs in 7 games.
Los Angeles scored 37 points in the third quarter, including the last 5 points of the quarter, to lead by 6 heading into the fourth. They led by 8 in the fourth before the Rockets used a 6-2 run to cut the lead to 87-83.
After the Clippers pulled away, Harden tried to spark a rally with 5 straight points, but the Clippers put a damper to that quickly.
Clippers' coach Doc Rivers says he is unsure whether Paul will be ready for game 2 of the series in Houston on Wednesday night.
Griffin led six double-digit scorers for Los Angeles in the win, finishing with 26 points, 14 rebounds, and 13 assists for his second straight triple-double. After the Rockets scored 5 straight points to cut the lead to one, Matt Barnes hit two three-pointers to kick off a 12-0 run to help the Clippers pull away.
Barnes finished the night with 20 points, while Jamal Crawford added 21 in relief of the injured CP3, who missed his first game of the season.
Dwight Howard paced the Rockets with 22 points, while James Harden added 20 but had 9 of the team's 23 turnovers in the loss. The Rockets were playing following a 6-day layoff after taking out the Dallas Mavericks in 5 games. The Clippers had just 48 hours to prepare after taking down the San Antonio Spurs in 7 games.
Los Angeles scored 37 points in the third quarter, including the last 5 points of the quarter, to lead by 6 heading into the fourth. They led by 8 in the fourth before the Rockets used a 6-2 run to cut the lead to 87-83.
After the Clippers pulled away, Harden tried to spark a rally with 5 straight points, but the Clippers put a damper to that quickly.
Clippers' coach Doc Rivers says he is unsure whether Paul will be ready for game 2 of the series in Houston on Wednesday night.
