Griffin scores 30, Clippers beat Jazz

Griffin scores 30, Clippers beat Jazz

Los Angeles Clippers power forward Blake Griffin (top) fouls Utah Jazz center Al Jefferson (25) after Jefferson grabbed a rebound during their NBA game on Monday in Salt Lake City.

Randy Foye knew what was coming. He had seen Chris Paul do it many times as a teammate in Los Angeles last year.

This time, going against the Clippers, Foye raced backcourt to steal the inbounds pass and put up a 3-pointer that would have won the game for the Utah Jazz.

Unlike his 3-pointer that pulled Utah within one point with 1.2 seconds remaining, this one missed its mark and was too late, allowing the Clippers to hang on for the 105-104 victory in Salt Lake City.

"I wish there were 3 seconds left because I would have been able to get to the basket or line it up and knock it down," said Foye, who came to the Jazz as a free agent this offseason.

"But it wasn't meant to be."

Blake Griffin led Los Angeles with a season-high 30 points and Jamal Crawford added 20 off the bench, including a pair of late free throws for the Clippers.

Early on, Monday's game looked like it might be a Jazz blowout.

"In the first half, it was almost a waste of time because no one showed up," Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro said of his team, which was still down 14 late in the third. "Our defense was weak, we were soft and we had no toughness. ... But I was very pleased with the way we responded ... and made plays down the stretch."

One of the biggest came from 6-foot-11 center DeAndre Jordan. He blocked Al Jefferson's short floater that would have tied the score at 101 with 26 seconds remaining.

"That block was the play of the game," Paul said. "DJ had to cover a lot of ground to get there and block that shot."

From there, the teams would trade free throws, with Matt Barnes and Crawford sinking a pair each for LA and Mo Williams making two for the Jazz until Foye nearly became the Jazz hero.

The loss was the first at home this season for the Jazz and first at home for Utah since a 107-105 setback against Phoenix on April 4.

Early on, a pair of ex-Clippers did much of the damage.

Williams led the Jazz (9-10) against his former team with 20 points and 12 assists, and Foye added 19 points. Al Jefferson had 16 points and 10 rebounds for Utah.

Paul added 14 points for Los Angeles, but scored six in the fourth on 3-of-4 shooting after the Clippers entered the quarter trailing by 10.

"He's a gamer," Williams said of Paul. "He's going to show up in the fourth quarter. I've seen it enough. But I thought we did our job tonight. Unfortunately things just didn't go our way."

There was the foul on Chauncey Billups by Williams on an errant 3-point attempt. The Jazz thought it was a flop but Billups got the call and sank 2 of 3 free throws to tie the score at 99.

"Big call," Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin said. "The referees saw it a different way but I thought we did everything we could to challenge the shot."

(China Daily)