Doc Rivers got a bit of revenge last night as they throttled the Memphis Grizzlies at the FedExForum as the Clippers won by a score of 97-79. This was a rare performance from the Grizzlies at home and Memphis head coach, David Joerger, will not be pleased.
It was a fairly even first half, neither side could really pull as way as the Clippers and Grizzlies were going toe-to-toe with each other. The half ended with Mike Conley making an eight foot shot with just one second remaining in the half. Los Angeles came out hot to start the final 24 minutes making the first seven points in the half, pushing their lead to seven. Memphis was never really able to come back from that early deficit as they went through cold streaks throughout the final half of the game.
While Memphis did get production from Zach Randolph, Courtney Lee, and Marc Gasol, they were the only three Grizzlies to score in double digits. Randolph led all scorers last night with 20 points, shooting a remarkable 10 of 18 from the field while also bringing down 10 rebounds, earning his double-double for the evening. All three of Lee's baskets came from beyond the arc with two more points coming from the charity strike to bring his total up to eleven. In the last game against the Clippers, he was more of a force on the offensive end of the ball and did not really show up Friday.
On the other hand, the Clippers got production from every starter with Jamal Crawford getting buckets coming off the bench.Chris Paul was his usual self has he finished the ngh with a game high 19 points while getting everyone involved on the offense racking up an astounding 13 assists. Against Memphis, you really have to keep ahold of the ball and he did just that by only turning the ball over once. DeAndre Jordan was superb around the rim collecting 22 total rebounds with 6 of them coming on the offensive glass. Jordan has improved his free throw shooting dramatically in the last couple of weeks and although he missed ten shots last night, he was able to make seven big attempts from the charity strike.
The Los Angeles Clippers continue their short road trip as they continue on to Chicago for a Sunday matinee game with the Bulls. Memphis will also hit the road to Minnesota to take on Kevin Garnett and the Minnesota Timberwolves for their second game of a back to back.