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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
LOS ANGELES (AP) – On a night when Lamar Odom missed 12 of 15
shots, he did plenty of other things well – as did Jeff McInnis and
Michael Olowokandi.
McInnis scored 23 points and Olowokandi had 20 Thursday night in
a 97-92 victory over the Houston Rockets. Odom pitched in with 12
points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists for his fifth career
triple-double and second this season.
The Clippers' 25th victory marked the fifth time in the
franchise's 31-year history that they've won at least 10 more games
than they did the previous season. They were an NBA-worst 15-67
last season.
"Our early losses are helping us out now," McInnis said,
alluding to the Clippers' 17 defeats by margins of six points or
less. "In close games, we don't think twice. We just go out there
and play our game. Everybody is stepping up and helping out."
The Clippers won the season series 3-1, the first time they've
beaten the Rockets three times in a season since 1984-85 – their
first year in Los Angeles and Hakeem Olajuwon's first in the NBA.
"We knew it was going to be tough coming in here to play the
Clippers because they play every game hard," said Steve Francis,
who led Houston with 30 points and nine rebounds.
The Clippers are 12-12 since ending January with nine straight
losses. This recent .500 stretch began with a 101-84 victory over
the Rockets – their first win at Houston since January 1997.
"We've been making a statement to other teams," Olowokandi
said. "Every player is on the same page, and that's why we've been
winning lately."
The Rockets, who have lost consecutive games for the first time
since Feb. 3, are 2 1/2 games behind Minnesota for the eighth and
final Western Conference playoff spot.
"They did a good job on us defensively," coach Rudy
Tomjanovich said. "They have good athletes that were able to slide
over on our shooters and put hands in their faces – which was key.
They also were able to get the ball out of Steve's hands, which
knocked us out of our rhythm a little."
The Clippers led by 12 points after McInnis' six-foot runner
capped a 10-3 spurt with 6 1/2 minutes remaining. Houston got as close
as 84-80 on a slam dunk by Kelvin Cato with 2:02 left, but the
Clippers hung on despite getting only two field goals over the
final five minutes. They made nine free throws in the final 1:46.
"The great thing about this win was that Houston had everything
to play for. They're fighting for a playoff spot," coach Alvin
Gentry said. "I can't say enough about the way Jeff McInnis is
playing right now. I think he's making a strong statement to be the
most improved player in this league."
After missing their first eight shots, the Rockets pulled even
for the only time at 49-all with 9:21 left in the third quarter.
Odom was given a technical foul by referee Jim Clark for batting
the ball out of bounds in anger after Olowokandi fouled Cato on a
layup. Cuttino Mobley, who had 21 points on 6-for-20 shooting, made
the technical free throw and Cato made one of two from the line.
But the Clippers restored their nine-point margin with a 12-4
run capped by McInnis' two free throws with 30 seconds left in the
third.
Los Angeles got 3-point buzzer-beaters from Odom in the first
quarter and rookie Keyon Dooling in the second. Odom had only four
points in the first half on 1-for-8 shooting, but contributed eight
assists and seven rebounds.
Game notes
The Clippers are on the verge of having three players with
at least 100 blocked shots in the same season for the first time
since the league began keeping track in 1973-74. Lamar Odom has
114, rookie Darius Miles 99 and Olowokandi 98. The last time two
players had 100 blocks for them was 1992-93 (Danny Manning and
Stanley Roberts). ... For the 11th time this season, Miles played
at least 24 minutes without committing a turnover. In four of those
error-free games, he played at least 30 minutes. ... Walt Williams
returned to the Houston lineup after missing three games because of
a bruised right hand, and finished with two points in 12 minutes.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Houston Clubhouse
LA Clippers Clubhouse
RECAPS
San Antonio 115
Atlanta 101
Cleveland 109
Vancouver 95
Boston 113
New Jersey 98
Portland 101
Utah 99
Phoenix 91
Seattle 88
LA Clippers 97
Houston 92
Sacramento 103
Detroit 98
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