Clippers 112, Bobcats 85
LOS ANGELES -- Forward Blake Griffin scored 21 of his 31 points in the second half, and the Los Angeles Clippers rolled to a 112-85 win over the Charlotte Bobcats on Wednesday night at Staples Center.
It was the third time in four games Griffin scored 30 or more points. He hit 14 of 20 field-goal attempts against Charlotte.
Los Angeles forward Jared Dudley finished with 20 points, hitting six of nine 3-point tries. Point guard Chris Paul scored 17 points, all in the first half, and recorded 14 assists. Guard Jamal Crawford scored 11 for the Clippers.
Center Al Jefferson and guard Kemba Walker led Charlotte (14-19) with 14 points apiece. Jefferson also had 12 rebounds. Guard Gerald Henderson added 12 points, while forward Anthony Tolliver scored 11.
The Clippers (22-12) bounced back after suffering their worst defeat of the season Monday night to the Phoenix Suns at Staples. Against Charlotte, which dropped its fourth in a row and its 17th consecutive game to a Western Conference opponent, Los Angeles used a third-quarter spurt to break open the contest.
The teams were even at 56 at the break. The Clippers, though, opened the third quarter with a 17-6 run, capped by Dudley's 3-pointer that gave Los Angeles a 73-62 advantage.
Dudley, who struggled recently with his outside shooting, scored 11 points in the third, hitting all four of his field-goal attempts, three of those coming from behind the arc. The Clippers outscored the Bobcats 25-13 in the quarter took an 81-69 lead into the fourth.
Griffin converted four of his five field=goal attempts in the third for eight points as Los Angeles hit 55 percent of its shots (11 of 20) compared to 21.1 percent (four of 19) for the Bobcats.
Overall, the Clippers shot 55.3 percent (47 of 85) from the field, while Charlotte hit just 38.2 percent (29 of 76).
NOTES: Coach Doc Rivers forced the Clippers to watch two replays of their 107-88 debacle against the Phoenix Suns on Monday night, when they committed 20 turnovers and shot 36.5 percent from the floor. "We saw a lot of things as a team that we've slipped on," Rivers said. "Our transition 'D' to start with, which has been unbelievable, was horrendous, as bad as it's been in a long time." ... The Bobcats entered the game giving up 93.8 point per game, the third-lowest average in the NBA. They ranked first in fewest points allowed in the paint (35.8 per game) and fast-break points (9.8 per game). ... Charlotte caps its five-game road trip with games Thursday at the Portland Trail Blazers and Saturday at the Sacramento Kings. ... The Clippers are headed for a Texas road swing, playing the Dallas Mavericks on Friday and the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday. ... The game drew a sellout crowd of 19,160.
