Austin Rivers had a game-high 28 points and the Los Angeles Clippers clawed back to beat the Memphis Grizzlies, 115-106, on Wednesday night at Staples Center.
"It's a huge win," said Clippers head coach Doc Rivers after the game. "When you play that team and they have their horses. It's always a good win."
Rivers played 44 out of a possible 48 minutes and also led the team in assists with seven. Jamal Crawford scored 22 points for the Clippers off the bench.
"We couldn't take him out," Rivers said about his son's minutes. "Usually I bring in Jamal [Crawford] for Austin in the third quarter, but he was rolling at that time and we needed points. I didn't even notice he played that many minutes until after the game. He's the 24-year-old out there. So we let him play."
Austin up to 23p/7a/3r/1s/1b already. #ItTakesEverything pic.twitter.com/n6bVoodTLn — LA Clippers (@LAClippers) January 5, 2017
DeAndre Jordan just missed a 20-20 game, finishing with 18 points and 20 rebounds. Jordan leads the NBA with five 20+ rebound games this season and tied Shaquille O'Neal with 35 in his career.
Jordan is also the second active player (behind Dwight Howards's 72) in 20+ rebounds games.
Marc Gasol had 23 points for Memphis in a losing efforts as the Grizzles get swept by both L.A. based basketball teams on back-to-back nights.
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"We didn't get any stops at the end of the game," said Gasol. "It's going to be hard for us to win. When you are playing teams that attack a certain way, especially on pick-and-rolls and from the top of the floor, we all have to be on the same page."
The Clippers trailed by as many as 13 points in the second half, but Rivers caught fire in the third quarter, with nine points and five assists as L.A. outscored the Grizz, 36-22, in the period.
They would never trail again, completing the comeback and notching back-to-back victories since snapping a six-game losing streak on Monday against the Phoenix Suns.
Clippers superstars Chris Paul and Blake Griffin did not play in the game, but Paul was active and in uniform. He is expected to suit up on Friday against the Sacramento Kings.
"If you take the two best players off of each team, let's see what happens," Doc said about his team's recent stretch without their stars. This group keeps fighting. The bench is saving us."
