Chris Paul, Los Angeles Clippers Tie Series With San Antonio Spurs, 2-2, Get Back Homecourt Advantage

Chris Paul made sure his Los Angeles Clippers got the homecourt advantage back before they return to Hollywood in this best-of-seven series. The Clippers’ leader had a game-high 34 points leading the Clippers to a 114-105 win over the Spurs on Sunday to tie the first round affair at 2-2.. Paul, who had 7 assists and was 10-of-10 from the free throw line, also had great support from the rest of the Clippers.

Blake Griffin had a huge double-double of 20 points and 19 rebounds while J.J. Reddick had 17 points on 3-of-6 shooting from behind the arc. Off the bench, the backcourt of Austin Rivers and Jamal Crawford had 16 and 15 markers, respectively, for the Clippers, which held an 81-76 lead at the end of the third quarter and held off the home team’s rallies in the final quarter.

The Clippers lost Game 3 with a 100-73 beating—their worst playoff loss in franchise history. San Antonio, seeded sixth in the West in this match-up, lost the chance to gain the commanding 3-1 series lead. Instead, they will need to win at least once in L.A. now if they want to advance to the next round and defend their championship.

Kawhi Leonard led the Spurs with 26 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists while Tim Duncan helped with 22 points, 14 rebounds and 3 blocked shots. However, two other Spurs’ starters—Danny Green and Tiago Splitter—combined to shoot for just 0-of-11 field goals and produced zero points. As a team, the Spurs shot just 44 per cent from the field overall (37/84 FGs) and 24.0 per cent from the three-point area (6/25 3FGs).

The winner of this series will face the survivor in the Houston-Dallas first round match-up. The Rockets lead that series, 3-1. Game 5 of the Clippers-Spurs series is on Tuesday, April 28 and Game 6 is on Thursday, April 30. If necessary, Game 7 is on Saturday, May 2.

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