LOS ANGELES — Typical of a matinee game, the Clippers stumbled Saturday and fell behind by double digits, this time to the lowly Detroit Pistons. And before they could figure a way out, they first needed to quell a late-game push from their opponents before clinching a 112-106 victory.
The Clippers trailed by 13 points early in the first half and by nine at halftime. Then Paul George and Kawhi Leonard upped their games to lead the Clippers to the tougher-than-expected victory.
“We were sloppy and then scrappy,” George said.
George scored 20 of his game-high 33 points in the second half – 15 in the fourth quarter – while Leonard posted 24 points and five assists.
The Clippers went to work quickly in the second half, chipping away at the Pistons’ lead to pull within 88-86 in the fourth quarter after James Harden was fouled on a short jumper and made the free throw to complete the three-point play. Less than a minute later, he again was fouled, this time on a 3-point attempt, and made all three free throws to give the Clippers their first lead, 89-88, since early in the game.
The lead changed several times before Norman Powell’s driving layup with 6:59 left gave the Clippers a 96-92 lead they never relinquished. Powell later left the game after getting hit with an elbow in the face.
The Clippers didn’t let up. The Pistons kept up the pressure, but the closest they could come down the stretch was five as George continued his assault.
George gave the Clippers a 98-94 lead with a powerful dunk, just part of his second-half effort. His shooting had been off lately because of lingering groin issue but he showed no effects of the injury Saturday. He shot 14 of 24 from the field and 4 of 13 from 3-point range and had five rebounds and three assists.
Harden finished with 14 points, eight assists and six rebounds. Russell Westbrook had 13 points and Amir Coffey 12.
More likely, it was the energetic play of a young Pistons team, not the early hour,…
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