Paul, Griffin lead Clippers over Griz, 87-86

By BERNIE WILSON | The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES (AP) If the Los Angeles Clippers hadn't been so inept at the free throw line, Rudy Gay's last-second shot wouldn't have mattered.

Chris Paul had 24 points and 11 assists and high-flying Blake Griffin added 17 points for the Clippers, who beat the Memphis Grizzles 87-86 Saturday only after Gay missed a 3-pointer just before the buzzer.

''That's the way we planned it,'' Paul joked. ''They aren't going to give us anything. They're never out of the game with an electrifying scorer like Rudy Gay.''

The Clippers won their first home playoff game in six seasons to take a 2-1 series lead in the Western Conference playoffs. Game 4 is Monday night.

The long-suffering Clippers fans, who turned Staples Center into a sea of red, very easily could have gone home disappointed.

Chris Paul hit a fadeaway jumper with 2:02 left for an 82-80 lead. On the next possession he had a no-look bounce pass to Griffin coming in off the baseline for a monster slam.

Trailing 86-80 after two free throws by Paul, Gay hit a 3-pointer with 12.9 seconds left, Memphis' first field goal since 7:10. After Los Angeles missed three of four free throws, Gay hit another 3-pointer with 8.9 seconds to hush the crowd.

Eric Bledsoe missed two more free throws, Gilbert Arenas rebounded for Memphis to set up Gay's final shot. Gay, who had 24 points, got some room to shoot, and quickly let go. But it the shot bounced off the rim.

''At the end of the game I wanted to make a quick play,'' Gay said.

Memphis had another big advantage at the free throw line, like it did in winning Game 2, but couldn't capitalize. The Grizzlies made 30 of 39 while the Clippers were just 13 of 30.

''We missed 17 free throws?'' Paul said. ''We did? It shows how much fight we have. It's unacceptable.''

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76ers top Celtics 99-86 as Collins gets 400th win

PHILADELPHIA (AP)—With the division lead at stake, the 76ers dominated like a team that deserved to stay in first.

The Boston Celtics were more concerned about a teammate than the standings.

Elton Brand scored 20 points, and Spencer Hawes had 12 points and 10 rebounds to help Philadelphia keep its grip atop the Atlantic Division with a 99-86 victory over the Celtics on Friday night.

The Celtics would have grabbed first with a win, knocking out a Sixers team that has held that spot for all but a few days this season. The Sixers outscored Boston by 20 points in the third quarter to take control.

There was a serious scare when Celtics guard Mickael Pietrus left on a stretcher and was hospitalized after an awkward collision late in the first half. He was listed as having a questionable closed head injury. Pietrus landed hard on his tailbone and his head nearly smacked the court. He instantly clutched the back of his head with both hands and rolled over on his side.

Coach Doc Rivers said Pietrus had X-rays and an MRI. He had no other information.

The Sixers wore down a Celtics team concerned about its injured teammate and already playing short-handed. Pietrus started in place of Ray Allen, who sat out with a sore left ankle. Guard Avery Bradley also left Boston’s eighth straight road game with a sprained left ankle.

“I though the injury, fatigue, everything, kind of all caught up to us,” Rivers said.

But it was Pietrus, more than the score, that left the Celtics solemn on the bench. He crashed to the court after he collided with 76ers guard Lou Williams on a drive down the lane, grabbed his head and was down for at least 10 minutes. Trainers from both teams tended to him.

The Celtics circled Pietrus and a couple of players took a knee as the swingman was put on a stretcher and taken out. Several Celtics sat on the bench with their heads bowed.

“It looked awful,” Rivers said. “I just saw his neck snap. You knew that was bad. He was throwing up on the floor, so that’s not very good either.”

His injury sucked the festive atmosphere in the important game right out of the arena. The Celtics were only a half-game behind the 76ers. Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce each scored 20 points. Rajon Rondo had 17 assists.

“We shouldn’t lose that way,” Pierce said. “It was a huge game for us and we took a step back today.”

Williams scored 11 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter. Jrue Holiday had 15 and Andre Iguodala 14 to give coach Doug Collins his 400th career victory. He’s the 40th coach in NBA history to hit that total.

“My grandson got up from his nap today, and he was in the bathroom,” Collins said, choking back tears, “and (Collins’ daughter) heard him in there praying that Pop-Pop could get his 400th win tonight.”

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