Rowan Kavner
UTA 102 – LAC 91
Summary: Blake Griffin looked energized and ready to carry the Clippers on the second game of a back-to-back after arriving late the night prior from Denver.
Next Game: 11/27
Unfortunately for the Clippers, he was one of the few.
Griffin went 18-of-23 and finished with 40 points, 12 rebounds and three assists, while Chris Paul added 24 points on 10-of-15 shooting with eight assists and five rebounds, but the rest of the Clippers (7-8) combined to go 10-for-37 as the group struggled to stop the Jazz (7-7) down the stretch in a 102-91 loss.
Unlike the third quarter which ignited the Clippers the night before in Denver, the quarter began the downfall Wednesday for a group which seemed to have started to find itself against the Nuggets. The Jazz went on a 9-2 run in the middle of the quarter and led by five points after the third.
It got worse for the Clippers early in the fourth, with the Jazz beginning the quarter on a 6-0 run led by Gordon Hayward, who finished with 33 points and seven rebounds.
The Jazz had 16 more second-chance points off nine offensive rebounds in the first half and finished with 23 second-chance points on the night, while shooting better than 50 percent on the night.
The Clippers had won their previous 13 games against the Jazz, but they watched that streak disappear Wednesday with 19 turnovers and struggles stopping Hayward and the Jazz in the fourth quarter as the frustration they thought might’ve vanished in Denver returned.
