Raptors 91, Clippers 80
LOS ANGELES -- Forward DeMarre Carroll and guard DeMar DeRozan scored 21 points apiece, sparking the Toronto Raptors to a 91-80 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday at Staples Center.
Forward Luis Scola added 20 points and eight rebounds and point guard Kyle Lowry contributed 13 points, 11 assists and three steals, helping the Raptors (9-6) avoid blowing a 29-point first-half lead late in the contest. Toronto beat the Clippers for the third straight time, all of them by double-digit margins.
Guard J.J. Redick scored 17 points and point guard Chris Paul had 13 points and 11 assists as the Clippers (6-7) lost their third in a row. Center DeAndre Jordan finished with 13 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks.
Los Angeles made a run in the final quarter, pulling within 73-67 after a 3-point jumper by forward Josh Smith with 7:30 remaining. However, DeRozan ended a Toronto drought of more than nine minutes without a field goal, scoring on a layup to halt the Clippers' surge.
Two foul shots by guard Cory Joseph and a jumper by Scola pushed the lead back to 12 points. Los Angeles never got any closer than eight the rest of the way.
The Raptors led 33-23 after one quarter and dominated the second quarter, outscoring the Clippers 30-11 for a 63-34 advantage at the break. The Raptors limited the Clippers to 23.5 percent shooting in the second quarter, while converting 47.1 percent of their shots. For the half, the Clippers canned all five of their free throws, but Toronto owned a considerable edge there, too, making 17 of 19.
Forward Blake Griffin, one of three Clippers starters who failed to score in the first quarter, had a forgettable half, missing both of his field-goal attempts and coming up empty in more than nine minutes. Griffin sat out the final 8:29 of the half after picking up his third foul. Griffin finally scored 30 seconds into the second half and finished with nine points on 4-of-10 shooting in almost 29 minutes. He also had six rebounds.
NOTES: Raptors C Jonas Valanciunas, who suffered a broken left hand Friday night against the Lakers, could miss six weeks, coach Dwane Casey said. Valanciunas was averaging 12.7 points and a club-leading 9.3 rebounds. ... The Raptors' backcourt of DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry creates problems for the Clippers because of their ability to attack the basket. "DeRozan is like hanging a sign, 'I'm getting to the basket tonight,'" Los Angeles coach Doc Rivers said. "Then Lowry has been extremely successful against us over the last year and a half, so we have to control that." ... The Raptors play eight of their next 10 games at Air Canada Centre, starting Wednesday against the Cleveland Cavaliers. ... The Clippers visit the Denver Nuggets on Tuesday.