Clippers’ 3-game win streak ends against Zion, Pelicans – Orange County Register
LOS ANGELES — The Clippers on Friday began a stretch of five games in seven nights against Western Conference teams that few would call pushovers.
It will be a test of their talent, focus and ability to ignore the obvious. This will not be easy.
Coach Tyronn Lue said before the game that the players needed to look to the next game on the schedule, not down the road, to emerge from the weeklong barrage unscathed.
“Just focus on one game at a time. Focus on tonight and not think about five in seven because you mentally exhaust yourself before you play a game,” Lue said.
First up, the New Orleans Pelicans, who came into Crypto.com Arena on Friday having beaten the Clippers in eight of their past 10 meetings dating to 2021.
This time wasn’t any different. The Pelicans continued their hold over the Clippers, handing them a 116-106 defeat to halt their modest three-game winning streak.
The loss eliminated the Clippers from moving on in the In-Season Tournament with a 1-3 record, while the Pelicans (3-1) sit atop West Group B. Houston is 2-1 in the group and needs to beat Dallas by at least 18 points on Tuesday to overtake the Pelicans and win the group.
The Clippers (6-8) next face the Dallas Mavericks (10-5) on Saturday night, the reigning NBA champion Denver Nuggets (10-4) on Monday, followed by road games against the Sacramento Kings (9-9) and the Golden State Warriors (8-9).
The Clippers didn’t give in easily. Trailing by 12, Lue stuck with Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, Ivica Zubac and Norman Powell for the final seven minutes. Having Powell and George on the floor down the stretch was a smart move. The two had keyed a comeback in the second quarter and Lue must have thought the two could find the same success.
The Clippers managed to pull within 108-101 after a 7-1 run before Zion Williamson added a pair of free throws. The Pelicans (9-7) kept the pressure on the Clippers in the final minutes to close out the win.
Williamson finished with 32 points on 13-of-25 shooting and six rebounds, while Brandon Ingram had 30 points.
The Clippers were led by George’s game-high 34 points and eight rebounds and Powell had 20 points on the strength of 3-for-5 shooting from 3-point range. Leonard also had 20 points.
The Clippers might have wished they could have skipped straight to the second game after watching the Pelicans build a 21-point lead in the first quarter behind the shooting of Ingram and Williamson, briefly taking some of the air out of recent success.
Instead of giving in, though, led by George and Powell, the Clippers regained their composure in the second quarter and outscored the Pelicans by 12 to trail by one at halftime, 56-55. Powell, who was cleared to play after experiencing soreness in his groin, and George fueled a second-quarter comeback combining for 27 points in the quarter.
Leonard got into the mix, adding a 3-pointer and dunk to further trim the lead, 56-52 before reserve center Daniel Theis hit a corner 3-pointer to leave the Clippers trailing by just one at the half.
A free throw by Russell Westbrook got the Clippers within 87-86 before the Pelicans took control with a 20-8 run over a five-minute span. Herb Jones scored nine of his 14 points during the spurt and Ingram added six.
The Clippers, who had lost six straight after Harden joined the team, came into the game buoyed by winning three consecutive games since shaking up their lineup. The victories, however, came against lesser-caliber teams – the Houston Rockets (8-7) and a pair of road wins against the struggling San Antonio Spurs (3-12).
Lue attributed the victories to finding the right fit, especially with George paired with Westbrook on the second unit.
“Playing through PG in that second unit where he can get in the fluid and the rhythm of the game (is key),” Lue said. “So, it’s been good for us and so I like where our rotations are at right now.”
Not too long ago, the Pelicans were in a similar place. They were disjointed and losing – five games in a row after a 4-1 start – and sinking fast. A cohesive team meeting got them rolling again, with Williamson and Ingram agreeing to play together instead of excelling individually.
Now, the two stars aren’t only playing together, they are winning together, beating some of the toughest teams in the Western Conference.
In their last four games, the Pelicans have beaten the streaking Sacramento Kings by 36 points, defeated the reigning champion Denver Nuggets by five and posted a 21-point victory over the Dallas Mavericks. That’s where the similarity ends between the teams’ recent play.
More to come on this story.
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