Only they didn’t know it until Jamal Crawford emphatically slammed the door down on their chances as the Los Angeles Clippers shot and dribbled the Bulls into oblivion with a 120-93 win at the Staples Center, completing the L.A. two-step with a 1-1 record but leaving with a bad taste. The Bulls were unable to slice the lead under double figures the rest of the way.
Advertisement
Reader note: Plastic disc spinning at 33 1/3 revolutions per minute (about the speed of Bulls defenders getting out to Clippers shooters) moving along grooves to produce sound waves.
Mavericks 91, Suns 78 – At Dallas: Deron Williams scored 27 points and Dallas won without Dirk Nowitzki, who sat out the opener of a back-to-back set and the first of Dallas’ five games in seven nights.
Crawford led the Clippers with 26 points off the bench.
“It was a collective effort, but Jamal went on a killing spree”, said Chris Paul, who had 19 points and seven assists. Early on, I think they thought it was going to be with their offense and now they realize it’s with their hands and their defense and the deflections.
The LA Clippers (31-16) are coming from a 105-93 win over the LA Lakers on Friday.
And while Butler wouldn’t go as far as saying his team was soft, he did admit to a lack of discipline. “We just knew that wasn’t going to happen again”, Austin Rivers said about the mood after that game in Toronto.”…After it happened, we were like, ‘This should never happen again'”. They’ve lost four of six and dropped to 10-11 on the road. Redick, as he racked up 21 points and stretched the floor.
ORLANDO, Fla. – Evan Fournier scored 24 points, including 15 in the fourth quarter, to lead Orlando over Boston.
Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich returned after missing six games with a left quad contusion.
In the third quarter, the Clippers took control, building a 79-68 advantage after a dunk by Jordan with 1:53 remaining in the quarter.
NOTES: Bulls G/F Mike Dunleavy, who hasn’t played this season due to his recovery from back surgery, participated in a half-court scrimmage Saturday. F Jeff Ayres, who has had two points and two blocks in two games since his debut last weekend, will be signed to another 10-day contract….
But it was not enough, as Rivers pitched in to keep the away team at bay.
Los Angeles’s bench finished the game with 48 points compared to the 18 scored by Chicago’s bench.
The Heat, playing just their second home game since January 6, got production from an unexpected source. Would’ve looked a lot better production-wise if he got any foul calls, but you can’t say he shot well from outside nor really ran much offense, having 4 assists but also 3 turnovers. They got comfortable. Our shots weren’t falling and it affected us at the other end.
Advertisement
The Los Angeles Clippers will host the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday, February 3rd before heading out on the road for their next four games.
