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 Geplaatst: 24-12-2019 09:52:54 Onderwerp: HOUSTON - Near the end of a seven-game road trip, there was |
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HOUSTON - Near the end of a seven-game road trip, there was some concern that the Los Angeles Clippers might be running out of gas. Gary Grant Jersey .Turns out that there was no need to worry.Blake Griffin had 30 points and 10 rebounds and Jamal Crawford added 21 points to help the Clippers coast to a 102-85 win over the injury-depleted Houston Rockets on Friday night.The Rockets were playing their fifth straight game without Dwight Howard (knee strain) and were also missing two other starters.In the sixth game of a seven-game trip, the Clippers took the lead at the end of the first quarter and didnt trail again. Houston got within 10 points early in the third, but a run by Los Angeles pushed the lead to 18.Coach Doc Rivers was asked what a win like this tells him about his team, which has lost just once on this trip that ends Saturday in Utah.It tells you that their confidence is starting to grow, Rivers said. Ive always thought that when your team has confidence they have energy. They dont get tired. I thought thats what that was (Friday).The Clippers were focused on making things happen from the beginning of the game.I tried to be more aggressive early — getting to the lane, Griffin said. We just did a good job of moving the ball early. Even though they were banged up, I thought it was a good test for us.An alley-oop dunk by DeAndre Jordan made it 94-73 with about six minutes remaining and the starters went to the bench soon after that.James Harden had 16 points to lead Houston. He said they cant blame their injuries for this loss.Theyre a really good team and were down on numbers (but) thats no excuse, he said. We got stops but we just couldnt get a shot to fall.Its the third straight win for the Clippers and theyve won 10 of their last 11 over the Rockets.J.J. Redick added 15 points and Chris Paul had 10 points and seven assists for Los Angeles.Already playing without starting point guard Patrick Beverley, the Rockets lost Isaiah Canaan with a sprained left ankle in the second quarter and he didnt return. With both players out, Houston had to rely on the 37-year-old Jason Terry for the rest of the game.Canaan finished with 13 points and rookie Tarik Black, who was filling in for Howard, had 11 points and nine rebounds. Canaan was on crutches and wearing a boot on his left foot after the game and wont make the trip for Saturdays game at Milwaukee.The Clippers led by 10 early in the third quarter before using a 10-2 run to extend their advantage to 68-50. Paul and Redick both made 3-pointers in that span.Crawford scattered cheers from the home crowd when he sunk a long 3-pointer as he fell to the ground late in the third quarter. He was fouled on the play and hit the free throw to push L.A.s lead to 83-65. He had four 3-pointers.The Clippers scored the last seven points of the first quarter to take a 26-24 lead. They used a 9-1 run at the beginning of the second to push the lead to 37-25 about nine minutes before halftime. Houston used an 11-5 spurt, powered by three 3-pointers, after that to cut the lead to 42-36.Jordan had a two-handed dunk late in the second quarter before Terry was called for a flagrant 1 foul for hitting Griffin in the face on his way to the basket. He made both free throws to push Los Angeles to a 56-44 lead at halftime.TIP-INSClippers: Matt Barnes returned to the starting lineup after missing the last two games with a sore left calf. ... Guard Chris Douglas-Roberts remains out with a strained right Achilles.Rockets: F Terrence Jones missed his 12th straight game with nerve damage in his left leg. ... Beverley was out for a third consecutive game with a strained left hamstring.ON THE ROAD: When the Clippers get back to Los Angeles they will have travelled 7,231 miles during this seven-game road trip. That is the second-longest trip by distance that any team in the NBA will travel in a seven-game stretch this season.The road is hard, coach Doc Rivers said. Winning is hard. The fact that were doing it on the road is great.UP NEXTClippers: At Utah on Saturday.Rockets: At Milwaukee on Saturday. Bill Walton Jersey . -- Former NHL star Jeremy Roenick shot a second-round 69 to take the lead after 36 holes and former LPGA great Annika Sorenstam and Chad Pfeifer, who lost his left leg above the knee serving in Iraq, are among several players in contention in the American Century Championship tournament on Saturday. Brent Barry Jersey . - A lot of scenarios ran through Terrell Suggs head when the Baltimore linebacker prepared to face the Pittsburgh Steelers. MIAMI -- Eager to give himself some run support, New York Mets pitcher Jonathon Niese stepped to the plate with a runner at third and dropped down a perfect suicide squeeze bunt. His teammates, meanwhile, swung away -- and connected. Daniel Murphy hit a three-run homer and the Mets matched a season high with 17 hits Sunday to beat the slumping Miami Marlins 11-5. Niese (4-4), who has been plagued by a lack of offensive help this year, won for the first time since May 22 and enjoyed pitching with a big lead. "It was a good feeling," he said. "We hit them hard and hit them early. Its a lot more comfortable going out there, and youre able to pound the zone." Niese allowed less than four earned runs for the 19th consecutive start, giving up three in six innings. "The offence really busted out, and Jonathon did another great job," teammate David Wright said. "Every time he takes the ball, you think hes going to go nine innings, and offensively we havent done a lot to pick him up. Im glad we were able to do that today." Niese -- batting eighth -- drove in a run with a bunt in the second inning. Manager Terry Collins joked that he hadnt called for a suicide squeeze since 2006, and Niese said it might have been the first of his career. "Luckily was able to get a pitch I could put down," Niese said. Kirk Nieuwenhuis scored without a play for a 2-0 lead. "The squeeze was huge," Collins said. "We dont do that much, but I wanted to see if we could get something started, so we tried something different." The bulk of the offence, however, came from higher in the order. Wright drove in a run for the sixth game in a row. Curtis Granderson thrived again in the leadoff spot, reaching base four consecutive times. He and Lucas Duda each had three hits. Murphy had two hits, including his sixth homer. Nieuwenhuis, making his first start since being recalled from Triple-A, doubled twice. "Weve been waiting a long time to break one open," Collins said. "People think we play ugly game. Were getting beat 4-3 and 3-2. Were hanging in there. Wee get a lot of guys on, we just havent been able to get big hits. Kawhi Leonard Jersey. When you have big hits, you look great." Rookie Anthony DeSclafani (1-2), making his fourth major league start, gave up seven runs in 3 2-3 innings and departed with a 7.59 ERA. He was unable to keep the ball down or throw breaking pitches for strikes. "I fell behind hitters, and the fastballs were flying up in the zone," he said. "When that happens, youre not going to get the results you want." The Marlins (37-3 fell below .500 for the first time since April 30. Ten days ago they had the best home record in the majors, but they went 3-7 on their longest homestand of the year, losing all three series. "You just have to keeping grinding and stay positive," Garrett Jones said. "Its a long season. Every team runs into this type of thing where the offence isnt clicking and the pitching isnt clicking." The Mets had scored a total of 13 runs in Nieses previous five starts, but he led 7-0 before giving up three runs in the sixth. The left-hander then struck out Derek Dietrich with the bases loaded to end the inning and his afternoon. Nieses performance was part of a trend. Mets starters have an ERA of 1.74 over the past six games. The Mets have won four of their past five, but they still trail NL East leader Washington by five games. "If we keep the starting pitching going and keep the offence going, I think we should climb back in this thing," Niese said. NOTES: Marlins SS Adeiny Hechavarria (elbow) sat out his second game in a row but was feeling better available to pinch-hit. ... Marlins Spanish-language radio announcer Felo Ramirez celebrated his 91st birthday. ... The Mets improved to 16-11 in day games. ... The game drew a crowd of 24,613, plus 605 dogs on "Bark in the Park" day. ... The Mets begin a two-game homestand Tuesday when RHP Bartolo Colon (7-5, 3.8 pitches against Oakland. ... The Marlins begin a four-game series at Philadelphia on Monday when RHP Nathan Eovaldi (4-3, 3.76) pitches against RHP Roberto Hernandez (3-5, 4.52). ' ' ' |
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