Crawford helps Clippers cool down Bulls
CHICAGO -- Jamal Crawford scored 25 points off the bench, Chris Paul scored 17 and four starters reached double figures for the Los Angeles Clippers in a 101-91 win over the Chicago Bulls on Saturday night.
Crawford scored 17 points in the second half when the Clippers (37-25) erased a six-point halftime deficit and led by as many as 16 points. Blake Griffin had 16 points and J.J. Redick finished with 13 for Los Angeles.
Jimmy Butler scored 16 points and Robin Lopez had 12 for the Bulls (31-30), who had won five of their last six games before Saturday's loss. Bobby Portis scored 11 points for Chicago, which also got 10 points from Dwyane Wade.
Marreese Speights gave the Clippers a 13-point advantage with 9:18 remaining after they had trailed by as many as 10 points in the first half.
Luc Mbah a Moute, who scored 12 points, and Crawford sparked a 12-3 scoring run to close out the third quarter when Los Angeles built a nine-point cushion capped by a Crawford 3-pointer with one second remaining.
The Bulls led 61-55 at halftime after building a double-digit lead in the first half. The Clippers used a 12-2 run late in the second quarter to get to within two points. But Portis scored six straight points to open the gap back up before Paul connected on a 3-pointer to shrink the deficit back to six.
NOTES: Clippers PG Chris Paul played Saturday night after he was hit on his surgically repaired thumb on Friday night against Milwaukee. Paul missed 14 games earlier this season with a torn ligament. "He got hit on it and it hurts," Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. "That injury -- it hurts when you get hit on it. A lot. It doesn't do anything (to make the injury worse). It just hurts." ... F Brice Johnson (back) and C Diamond Stone were inactive. ... Bulls PG Michael Carter-Williams returned after missing three games with a knee injury. Carter-Williams, who started while the Bulls struggled with injuries to F Jimmy Butler and F Paul Zipser, said Carter-Williams will likely remain in a reserve role. ... Isaiah Canaan and G Anthony Morrow were inactive for Chicago.