National Basketball Association
Detroit 109, L.A. Clippers 104
When: 3:30 PM ET, Saturday, January 12, 2019
Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Officials:
#74 Curtis Blair, #51 Aaron Smith, #15 Zach Zarba
Attendance:
16540
By Field Level Media
Blake Griffin took advantage of the first opportunity to show his former fans what they're missing, scoring 44 points on Saturday afternoon to lead the visiting Detroit Pistons to a 109-104 victory against the Los Angeles Clippers.
Griffin was drafted No. 1 overall by the Clippers in 2009 and spent his first eight seasons with them, helping the team reach the playoffs in six straight years from 2012-17. He was traded to Detroit last January.
Detroit center Andre Drummond added 20 points and 21 rebounds, including nine on the offensive end. Reggie Bullock, another former first-round pick of the Clippers, scored 17 points for the Pistons, who had lost nine of 11.
The starting lineup for the Clippers included two players who came to Los Angeles in the Griffin trade; forward Tobias Harris and guard Avery Bradley. Harris finished with 11 points, 10 below his scoring average, and 10 rebounds. Bradley finished with three points.
Danilo Gallinari led Los Angeles with 23 points, while Lou Williams scored 22 and Montrezl Harrell 21, both coming off the bench.
After trailing by as many as 16 early in the second half, the Clippers opened the fourth quarter with a 10-2 run to pull within two. Williams tied the score 97-97 with a 3-pointer with 4:45 left.
Bullock made two 3-pointers just over a minute apart to extend the lead to 105-99, and Griffin scored inside to make it 107-99 with 2:47 left.
The Clippers had the ball trailing by three in the final minute, but Bruce Brown made a steal from Williams with 21.2 seconds left, was fouled and sank both free throws.
Griffin, who had signed a five-year, $173 million contract six months before he was traded, didn't shake the extended hand of Clippers owner Steve Ballmer during warmups, then went out and scored 15 points in the first quarter to help the Pistons to a 37-24 lead.
The Pistons maintained a 65-54 advantage at the half, then scored the first five points of the second half to take their biggest lead at 70-54.
--Field Level Media
Top Game Performances
| Detroit |
|
L.A. Clippers |
|
Blake Griffin 44 |
Scoring |
Danilo Gallinari 23 |
|
Blake Griffin 5 |
Assists |
Montrezl Harrell 6 |
|
Andre Drummond 21 |
Rebounds |
Tobias Harris 10 |
|
Blake Griffin 13 |
Free Throws Made |
Danilo Gallinari 8 |
|
Bruce Brown 3 |
Steals |
Tobias Harris 2 |
|
Bruce Brown 1 |
Blocks |
Montrezl Harrell 4 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
| Detroit
|
109 |
43.5 |
16-37 |
19-22 |
20 |
48 |
5 |
12 |
18 |
| L.A. Clippers
|
104 |
48.6 |
9-18 |
23-29 |
25 |
38 |
5 |
7 |
17 |
Upcoming Games
-
L.A. Clippers will play their next game at home against New Orleans. The Clippers have a W/L % of .560 after a win and .588 after a loss.
-
Detroit will play their next game on the road against Utah. The Pistons have a W/L % of .556 after a win and .348 after a loss.
For more information, contact us