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A Clippers fan holds up an “L.A. Strong” shirt during the first half of the Clippers’ 109-98 win Monday at the Intuit Dome. It was the Clippers’ first home game since the start of devastating wildfires in Los Angeles. (Jessie Alcheh / Associated Press)
Clippers players wore T-shirts with the words “L.A. STRONG” on them, and Clippers public address announcer Eric Smith delivered a pregame speech, offering encouragement to those affected by the devastating fires ravaging Los Angeles.
“The smoke will lift and they will return and rebuild because this is L.A., and today we all stand together — one team, one Los Angeles,” Smith told the Intuit Dome crowd.
The Clippers then played their first game since Wednesday, looking sluggish and falling behind by 13 points in the first half.
Read more: Kawhi-less Clippers are routed by the Jokic-less Nuggets
But the Clippers surged in the third quarter, taking control behind a strong defense and the play of James Harden and Norman Powell to pull out a 109-98 win over Miami.
Having four days off from basketball, the Clippers reflected on how L.A. is dealing with a catastrophe.
“It was hard just understanding what everyone is going through,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said, “the whole city and just everyone rallying behind each other just trying to do what they can to help support friends, families, neighbors. … It’s a tough time. So we’re just here to support, try to uplift people playing basketball, see if we can put smiles on people’s faces, see if we can have people gather, watch the game and do something different and try to take their mind off it. But it’s tough times right now.”
Powell finished with 29 points and six rebounds and Harden had 26 points and 11 assists. The Clippers also got a dominant performance from center Ivica Zubac, who had a 20-20 game with 21 points and 20 rebounds. It was his second career game with at least 20 points and 20 rebounds.
“It’s hard to do, but that’s something that I set a goal of: ‘I want to get a 20-20,’” Zubac said. “…I’m glad I was able to do it.”
Harden had 13 of his 26 points in the third quarter,…
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Author : LA Times
Publish date : 2025-01-14 06:01:00
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