Redick, Clippers Take 22-Point Lead, Hold Off Hornets, 99-92
LOS ANGELES (AP) — J.J. Redick scored 23 points, Chris Paul had 20 points and eight assists, and the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Charlotte Hornets, 99-92, on Tuesday night.
The Clippers led 63-41 with 10 minutes left in the third quarter. The Hornets rallied within a point in the final period.
Blake Griffin had 19 points and 11 rebounds for the Clippers, who were coming off back-to-back losses to Dallas and Houston. DeAndre Jordan finished with 12 points and 14 boards during a foul-plagued 33 minutes.
Matt Barnes was scratched because of a sore right hamstring and Jamal Crawford missed his seventh straight game because of a bruised right calf that has put his postseason status in question. Hedo Turkoglu made his first start for the Clippers, getting six points in 21 minutes after 85 games as a reserve over two seasons with them.
Al Jefferson led Charlotte with 21 points and former Clipper Mo Williams had 18 along with eight assists.
The Hornets, who had season lows of 66 points and 23 field goals Monday night in a 28-point loss at Utah, were down by a point after Gerald Henderson's basket with 7:18 to play.
Griffin's two free throws and short hook shot extended the margin to 91-85 with 4:56 remaining. Jordan made three of six free throws over the final 4:20 after the Hornets started to intentionally send him to the foul line.
Griffin, playing his second game after missing 15 because of a staph infection that required surgery on his right elbow, paced Los Angeles to a 59-41 halftime lead with 15 points.
TIP-INS
Hornets: F Cody Zeller missed his fourth straight game because of a sprained right shoulder. ... The Hornets had 13 turnovers. They came in averaging 11.9, the fewest in the league. ... Hornets coach Steve Clifford was an assistant coach with Orlando when Barnes, Turkoglu, Redick and Clippers teammate Glen Davis played for the Magic.
Clippers: They haven't blown a lead of more than 14 points in any of their first 68 games. ... Turkoglu, who turns 36 years old on Thursday, last started Nov. 2, 2012, for Orlando. He started all 109 games he played for the Magic during the previous two seasons after they got him from Phoenix in a December 2010 trade. ... Jordan's rebounding, shot-blocking ability and league-leading field goal percentage is going to make him one of the most coveted players among those who will be eligible for free agency during the offseason. "We're going to do everything we can to keep him, and I think we will," coach Doc Rivers said. "But he has the right. That's why they call it free agency." ... G Nate Robinson was signed to a second 10-day contract Tuesday after averaging 4.0 points, 1.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists in his first five games with the club. He played for Rivers in Boston when the Celtics reached the NBA Finals in 2010 and lost to the Lakers. "I like his energy," Rivers said. "The shots he takes, you figure eventually would fall anyway for him. That's what he does. He'll take some bad ones and make them or miss them. That's just Nate. But what we need is for him to be an energy player."
UP NEXT:
Hornets: At Sacramento on Friday night.
Clippers: At Sacramento on Wednesday night.
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