The L.A. Clippers and Indiana Pacers had pretty opposite streaks coming into their matchup on Wednesday night. Lob City had won their last eight contests, and the Pacers had lost five straight. Those streaks would both be extended in the seven o'clock matchup on Wednesday.
Neither team really dominated the first half of play, as each squad outscored the other in the two quarters with the Clippers taking the first, 33-25, and the Pacers taking the second, 24-21. With the halftime margin not above single digits, it was either team's game going into the third quarter of basketball. That changed when the Clippers went on an enormous run.
A few minutes after the beginning of quarter number three, L.A. was still up, 56-54. From that point on, they went on a scoring frenzy, reaching a lead of 20 at one point. Indiana was outscored, 28-16, in the third, but they for sure were not done fighting just yet.
C.J. Miles had his best game of the year, easily, on Wednesday. He scored 30 points, including 7 three-pointers but more importantly, he sparked his team's near comeback. The fourth and final quarter began with five straight points from Miles on Indiana's side and after lots of energetic plays and amazing effort, the Pacers had come back to within two points with two minutes remaining in the game. This major cut of the deficit ended on a magnificent three from Miles, resulting from an inbounds pass.
The bench of the Pacers really had a great night, scoring a season-high 66 points, and providing key scoring when Indiana needed it most. It was really a shame that the Pacers couldn't complete their comeback in the fourth but in the end, the Clippers scored the game's final five points to win, 103-96.
The Clippers played a very strong game, controlling the boards and shooting a solid 48 percent from the field. DeAndre Jordan led Los Angeles with a double-double of 12 points and 19 boards. He also blocked three shots on the night. Chris Paul and Blake Griffin also put up a double-double. Paul had 17 points and 15 assists, and Griffin put up 17 points and 10 boards. Jamal Crawford added a key 18 points as the sixth man. Jordan's and Griffin's rebounding numbers were virtually matched by the Pacers' Luis Scola and Lavoy Allen, but as a team, L.A. grabbed seven more boards.
For Indiana, Miles scored 30, and Scola and Allen each had double-doubles. Scola scored 12 and grabbed 14 boards, and Allen scored 14 and grabbed 13 boards. The problem for the Pacers was their lack of production coming from the starting unit, as the opening lineup scored a combined 36 points. Scola, Allen, and Miles all led Indiana after starting the game on the bench.
The result in this contest increases the Clippers' win streak to nine and makes the Pacers' losing streak six. L.A. is now 16-5, and Indiana has dropped to 7-15.