LA Clippers rebound, tie series vs Warriors

LOS ANGELES – After getting knocked down in their playoff opener, Blake Griffin and the Clippers answered with a dominant performance in shutting down the Golden State Warriors as soon as the game began.

Griffin scored a career playoff-high 35 points without a foul and Los Angeles led all the way in a 138-98 rout Monday night to even their first-round series at a game apiece.

“We were really aggressive on our defense,” Griffin said. “When you play more aggressive you stay out of foul trouble.”

Chris Paul added 12 points and 10 assists for the Clippers, who started the game on a 14-4 run and kept on going, maintaining a sizeable double-digit lead through the final three quarters. They finished with franchise records for points and largest victory margin in a playoff game.

“When we play with that force and thrust, it’s hard to defend us,” Paul said.

Game 3 is Thursday at Oakland.

All the foul trouble that plagued Griffin and Paul in the Clippers’ four-point loss in Game 1 belonged to the Warriors this time.

Stephen Curry scored 20 of his 24 points in the third quarter, when the Warriors never got closer than 25 points, while he played with four fouls. Klay Thompson finished with seven points – 15 under his average – and four fouls. Andre Iguodala, who fouled out of Game 1, and Jermaine O’Neal had four points and three fouls each.

The Clippers’ defense forced 26 turnovers, and offensively they had their way -–getting out in transition, attacking the rim and throwing lobs that led to dunks.

“We were awful,” Warriors coach Mark Jackson said. “They disrupted us with their intensity. That was a desperate basketball team we played against.”

Los Angeles shot 57 percent, made 12 of 25 3-pointers, hit 32 of 35 free throws for a playoff-record 91 percent and owned a 25-13 edge in fastbreak points. (AP)