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Griffin Injured As Clippers Sneak By Lakers 120-115

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The battle for Los Angeles opened another chapter Monday night as the Clippers and Lakers squared off at Staples Center. This is the second time these two squads have faced off this season with the Clippers winning the opening night matchup.

Coming into Monday’s contest the Clippers stood at 7-11 with the Lakers 8-11. Record wise these two teams are as close as they’ve been in years and this game was an indication of just that.

This contest was back and forth all night long. Whenever one team thought they could pull away, the other would battle right back. For the Lakers, depth was a key factor in being able to stay in the game. The Lakers bench outscored the Clippers 52-20 with guys like Jordan Clarkson and Kyle Kuzma making big contributions off the bench with 17 and 15 points respectively. For the Clippers getting to the foul line and knocking down their free throws played a big part in hanging around. The team went 28-30 from the line and were led by Lou Williams at the stripe who went a perfect 14-14 himself.

Williams wasn’t just effective at the line, he helped his club all over the floor. The ex-Laker was able to knock down shots at will, including ones that probably shouldn’t have gone in.

Williams finished the night with 42 points going an impressive 4-8 from beyond the arc.

While Williams was on fire for the Clippers the Lakers had their own knockdown perimeter shooter wreaking havoc in Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Caldwell-Pope was absolutely scorching out of the gate for the Lakers with 20 points by the end of the first half and 29 by the time the game was all over. Caldwell-Pope went 5-11 from the three point line and even helped out on the boards with 6 rebounds.

The difference in this game may have been the stars. Blake Griffin for the Clippers showed up all over the court and helped the Clippers anywhere and everywhere as he was on triple-double watch for much of the second half. Griffin finished with 26 points to go with 11 rebounds and 6 assists. Lakers star Lonzo Ball on the other hand struggled with just 3 points along with 5 rebounds and 7 assists. Ball has been having a great rookie season so far and while the last time these team’s played he was locked down by Patrick Beverly, this was a game where the rookie seemed poised to step into the spotlight but he couldn’t capitalize.

By the time this one was said and done it was the heroics of Lou Williams that saved the Clippers and led them to a 120-115 victory.

For Clippers fans however this was a bittersweet win as with just minutes remaining in the game Blake Griffin exited the game after sustaining a knee injury after a collision with teammate Austin Rivers. (Fans may want to shield their eyes looking at this replay)

Currently we have no news on the injury but with three starters already out of the Clippers lineup another injury would be absolutely devastating for this team. We will keep you updated as we hear more regarding Griffin.

Moving ahead the Clippers will take on the Utah Jazz next on Thursday back at Staples Center. The Lakers on the other hand have the Golden State Warriors at home tomorrow night.

Stay with us at Calisportsnews.com as we will keep you up-to-date on all things Los Angeles Clippers and the rest of the LA sports teams! All Cali, All the time

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