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Monday, Jan. 17 10:30pm ET
Spurs hold off late-charging Clippers | |||||
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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- David Robinson got off to the fast start he was looking for against the Los Angeles Clippers. Robinson scored 25 of his season-high 38 points in the first half and grabbed 11 rebounds as the San Antonio Spurs held off the late-charging Clippers 99-93 on Monday night. "Lately, I've been looking for my shot a little bit more and looking to get it going early. So, if I'm can do it, I'm going to do it," said Robinson, who scored 71 points against the Clippers at the L.A. Sports Arena in the 1993-94 season finale to clinch his first NBA scoring title. "It just happens on the nights when I really start going well early. I mean, when Tim Duncan's going well early -- which he is most nights -- then that's fine because my role really is to play defense and control the flow of the game." Duncan, the other half of the Spurs' Twin Towers, had 23 points and 13 rebounds to help the defending NBA champions, beat the Clippers for the eighth straight time. Maurice Taylor had 22 points and 12 rebounds, and Derek Anderson added 17 points for the Clippers, who have lost five straight and nine of 10. The Spurs pulled away to a 94-81 lead with an 11-2 spurt, capped by Malik Rose's layup with 6:13 to play. During the run, Robinson accidentally elbowed Duncan in the left side of the head while going for a defensive rebound -- forcing Duncan to the sidelines for about four minutes. Clippers guard Eric Piatkowski scored seven straight points to trim the Spurs' lead to 96-88, then sank three free throws with 1:24 remaining after Avery Johnson fouled him beyond the 3-point stripe. But 96-93 was as close as the Clippers got, as Johnson redeemed himself with a clinching layup with 29 seconds remaining and Duncan pulled down two critical defensive rebounds. "They played tough," Robinson said. "Derek Anderson plays great against us and Maurice Taylor was making all kinds of shots. Then Piatkowski comes in there at the end and makes big-time shots. So they do seem to rise to the occasion against us -- which a lot of teams have this year." Both of San Antonio's victories over the Clippers have come by a combined 11 points. "It's just a matter of time," said Clippers rookie Lamar Odom, who shot 3-for-15 and finished with eight points. "We've been in these games right until the last minute. We just needed that one more consistent scorer on the court tonight and couldn't get it." Taylor received a cut over his left eye when he was fouled by Mario Elie with 8:55 left in the third quarter and the Clippers trailing 63-59. The Spurs increased their margin to 75-65 over the next 5½ minutes while the Clippers' leading scorer was getting stitched up. "That definitely hurt us on the offensive end, because at that time he was filling it," Odom said. "With this team, it's always important that we compete. If we don't compete, that's when we take two steps back. But as long as we play hard, it's always a step forward." Shortly after Taylor returned, he banked in a 13-footer in between 3-point shots by Piatkowski and Troy Hudson as the Clippers closed to 75-73. But Robinson responded with a short hook shot, a dunk and a 14-foot jumper in the final minute of the quarter for an 81-75 lead. "We need David to be more demonstrative every night -- not just against the Clippers," Johnson said. "If he comes with that same type of aggressiveness against Portland and the Knicks next week, then we'll really be excited because he'll be playing against (Arvydas) Sabonis and Patrick Ewing." The Spurs are 11-11 since their 14-3 start, which was the best in franchise history. They're also 11-11 on the road. "This was a great win for us," Duncan said. "I don't care what the score was. Road wins are great for us because we're not playing very well on the road right now." Robinson powered the Spurs to a 58-52 halftime lead with 12-for-17 shooting. His 25 points represented the highest total for one half by a Clippers opponent this season, two more than Shaquille O'Neal had for the Lakers on Jan. 4. Game notesJohnson didn't get much sleep after returning late Sunday night from Charlotte guard Bobby Phills' funeral. Johnson and Phills were teammates at Southern University. ... The Spurs were forced to start their shootaround at 11:30 a.m. ET because of the Lakers' afternoon game against Seattle. ... This was the only time this season that the Clippers and Lakers had home games scheduled at Staples Center on the same day. ... The Clippers entered the game having won five of their previous six at home. | ALSO SEE NBA Scoreboard San Antonio Clubhouse LA Clippers Clubhouse RECAPS Boston 105 Washington 101
San Antonio 99
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