Thunder at Clippers
THE STORY: The Los Angeles Clippers have aspirations of claiming their first Pacific Division title. In the meantime, they’ll settle for securing a playoff spot. The Clippers can do just that with a win Monday, but it figures to be a tough task against the Western Conference-leading Oklahoma City Thunder. The Clippers secured a 100-98 road victory over the Thunder when the two highly entertaining teams met last week.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, NBATV, Prime Ticket (Los Angeles), FS Oklahoma
ABOUT THE THUNDER (44-16): With San Antonio nipping at their heels, the Thunder have not faltered, maintaining a one-game edge in the race for the West’s top spot. Superstars Kevin Durant (36 points) and Russell Westbrook (31) carried the Thunder to a 115-110 victory over Minnesota their last time out. "Hopefully we get (the No. 1 seed),” Durant said. “If not, we've just got to keep playing. We can't worry about that. We've just got to worry about how we can get better every single game."
ABOUT THE CLIPPERS (37-23): Los Angeles is starting to put it all together at the right time. The Clippers, winners of 11 of 13 overall, trail the Lakers by 1 1/2 games for the division lead. A postseason berth would be the first since 2005-06 for the Clippers, who could also clinch with a Phoenix loss. Chris Paul, acquired before the season, has been carrying the club in the fourth quarter, including hitting the go-ahead bucket in Wednesday’s victory over Oklahoma City.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. Clippers All-Star forward Blake Griffin has struggled recently against the Thunder. He was held to a season-low seven points in the last meeting and has a combined 23 points the previous two affairs.
2. Shot-block artist Serge Ibaka has swatted away 12 in his last two games for the Thunder. He averages an NBA-best 3.6 blocks.