|
RECAP
|
BOX SCORE
|
GAME FLOW
PHOENIX (AP) -- Maybe the Los Angeles Clippers are just too young
to realize they're supposed to be the laughingstock of the NBA.
The Clippers, who already had a couple of surprise victories and
several near misses, sank 10 of 14 3-pointers Friday night to beat
the Phoenix Suns for the first time in 13 tries, 98-88.
|  | | Quentin Richardson of the Clippers gets a pass off against the Phoenix defense Friday. |
"I think coaches in their pre-game talks are telling players,
'This ain't gonna be no cakewalk. These guys are going to play
hard.' And that's what we're going to do," Quentin Richardson
said. "We've got athletes, and we've got young guys who are
hungry."
Jeff McInnis scored 21 of his 24 points in the second half and
Richardson, a 20-year-old rookie, added a season-high 21 points.
Lamar Odom scored 23 for the Clippers, who hadn't beaten Phoenix
since March 18, 1997.
Richardson went 4-for-4 on 3-pointers, McInnis 2-for-2 and Odom
3-for-5.
The Suns shot 36 percent from the field.
"Our defense was as bad as I've seen it," Phoenix coach Scott
Skiles said. "We were just absolutely walking in mud from the
beginning. We were loafing. We were lazy. We just didn't show up."
Los Angeles led by as many as 19 in the third quarter amid a
chorus of boos from the America West Arena crowd, and the Suns were
knocked out of first place in the Pacific Division.
Rodney Rogers matched his season high with 25 points for the
Suns. Tony Delk added 20. Jason Kidd had 13 points, nine rebounds
and eight assists, but made just five of 16 shots.
Phoenix's Shawn Marion was scoreless, going 0-for-7 from the
field with four rebounds.
"They're a very young team," Rogers said. "They've got a lot
of talent. Teams like that you can't take lightly. They showed us
an example tonight."
Clippers coach Alvin Gentry wants his team to take the victory
in stride.
"This is a good win for us, but the one thing we've talked
about all year is we're not going to get overly excited with any
win we have, and we're not going to get overly depressed with any
loss that we have," Gentry said. "We're going to keep it at an
even keel and continue to try to improve."
Leading 48-41 at the half, Los Angeles outscored Phoenix 13-2 to
take a 66-47 lead on Odom's 10-footer with 3:52 left in the third
quarter. The Suns didn't score during a 4:42 stretch.
Richardson sank two 3-pointers and Odom one during the run.
Rogers scored seven points as Phoenix outscored the Clippers
11-3 to start the fourth quarter, cutting the lead to 75-67 on Paul
McPherson's rebound stuff with 8:18 to play.
But McInnis, who banked in a 35-footer at the first-quarter
buzzer, scored eight points in a row -- including a 3-pointer -- to
put Los Angeles up 82-67 with 6:24 to play.
Phoenix never got closer than eight again.
"We pulled together," McInnis said. "There was no way we were
going to give the game up. We fought too hard."
The Suns, who had won three games in a row and five of six, have
struggled against the NBA's lesser teams. Before bowing to the
Clippers (8-17), Phoenix already had lost to Golden State, Denver
and New Jersey.
The Clippers used a 14-0 spurt to take an early 17-6 lead. The
Suns missed 11 consecutive shots during the run, and trailed the
rest of the half.
The Suns never got closer than three in the second quarter. A
3-pointer and an 18-footer by Delk cut the lead to 44-41 with 43
seconds left in the half. Odom sank a pair of free throws, Keyon
Dooling blocked Kidd's jumper and Richardson dunked off a rebound
to put the Clippers up 48-41 at the break.
Game
notes
Delk started at guard for Phoenix in place of Mario Elie,
out three to four weeks with a broken left hand. ... Phoenix (15-7)
trails Sacramento (15-6) and Portland (17-8) by half a game in the
Pacific standings. ... The Suns took 92 shots, the Clippers 67. ...
Los Angeles won despite 23 turnovers. ... The Suns rallied from 18
down to barely beat the Clippers 95-89 in overtime in their first
meeting, Nov. 25 in Los Angeles. ... The Clippers topped 90 points
for the first time in seven games against Phoenix.
|
|
ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
LA Clippers Clubhouse
Phoenix Clubhouse
RECAPS
Cleveland 103
Indiana 95
Dallas 112
Philadelphia 94
Charlotte 103
Washington 89
Sacramento 104
Boston 81
Utah 89
New York 58
Minnesota 99
Detroit 90
Atlanta 85
Chicago 74
Milwaukee 104
Toronto 97
LA Clippers 98
Phoenix 88
Portland 106
Orlando 96
Seattle 99
Miami 81
LA Lakers 98
Vancouver 76
|
