animOgen

CHICAGO -- When the Los Angeles Clippers lost All-Star Chris Paul to a separated shoulder, they turned to Blake Griffin for leadership. And he has responded by stepping up his play. Griffin had 26 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists to lead the Los Angeles Clippers to a 112-95 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Friday night. The Clippers improved to 7-3 since Paul, who was averaging 19.6 points and 11.2 assists, was injured. "Blake doesnt run from a challenge," Clippers guard Jamal Crawford said. "Hes one of the hardest workers Ive seen." The Clippers enjoyed a strong outside game, opening up Griffin on the inside, and he finished with his 27th double-double. "(I want to be) a leader for us, knocking down shots and being able to mix up my game, going inside when I felt the need to and going outside when I needed to," Griffin said. Crawford added 19 points for the Clippers, who had six players score in double figures and shot 54 per cent from the field -- including 13 for 21 on 3-pointers. DeAndre Jordan added 10 points and 12 rebounds. "They were open, the right guy was taking them, all of our 3-point shooters," Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. "They made them, and that opened it up for Blake." Carlos Boozer scored 22 points for the Bulls, who snapped a three-game winning streak. "I dont think any aspect of our defence was any good," Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. The Clippers have won four straight against the Bulls, and improved to 3-2 on their seven-game trip. Chicago cut the lead to eight in the third quarter but Darren Collison answered with two quick baskets and the Clippers led 92-80 heading to the fourth. Los Angeles got off to a strong start. The Clippers shot 10 for 14 on 3s and finished 64.1 per cent overall from the field in the first half to take a 68-55 lead at halftime. Jordans dunk gave the Clippers a 60-39 lead, their largest margin, with 3:52 left before halftime. Los Angeles was 7 for 8 from beyond the arc in the first quarter to set a franchise record for 3s in a quarter. The Clippers led 41-26 after shooting 73.7 per cent in the period. "Thats kind of what we talked about, especially defensively," Griffin said about the quick start. "But we still didnt do a good job in the first quarter. We were just so hot early. We got that lead and kept it. Especially on the road, you never want to come out sluggish." In the teams previous meeting, the Clippers routed the Bulls 121-82 on Nov. 24 for their worst loss of the season in the first game after Derrick Rose suffered a season-ending knee injury. The Clippers were averaging 105.4 points, fifth in the league. The Bulls were one of the NBAs top defensive teams, holding opponents to 92.5 points per game before Friday. "Giving up 3s, we strive for five or less," Bulls forward Taj Gibson said. "That was just crazy. We kept fighting. But once they give a team like that confidence, its hard to shut them off." J.J. Redick scored 18 points and shot 4 for 7 from 3-point range. Collison, playing despite a sprained toe, had 17 points. Boozer, back from a one-game absence due to a sore left calf, scored 16 points in the first quarter. Gibson added 18 points, Mike Dunleavy had 17 and Joakim Noah 12 as the Bulls shot 43 per cent from the field and 6 for 19 from 3-point range. The Bulls were without Kirk Hinrich, who missed his second consecutive game with a strained right hamstring. "I think we were passive," Bulls guard Jimmy Butler said. "I dont like the word soft, but I think we were a little bit of that too. They got the shots they wanted to get. We didnt make it too tough for them at all." NOTES: Rivers said the Bulls shouldnt let Thibodeau get away. Thibodeau was on Rivers coaching staff from 2007-10 with the Boston Celtics. "I think it would be nuts not to have him here," Rivers said. "Hes the best coach, one of the best coaches, in the league, so if you have that, thats an asset. And I dont think any right-minded organization would allow that asset to leave. Because with all this adversity theyve had with injuries, if you allow that one to leave, things will fall apart -- and that would be pretty much a guarantee." Thibodeau declined to address rumours about his future. ... Hinrich will possibly miss the Bulls trip to Charlotte on Saturday as he continues to receive treatment, Thibodeau said. ... Thibodeau said it would be a great experience for Rose to play for Team USA if he is healthy. Rose was one of 28 players named to the 2014-16 national team pool. The FIBA Basketball World Cup will be Aug. 30-Sept. 14 in Spain. Rose is out for the NBA season after undergoing knee surgery on Nov. 25. ... Thibodeau picked up a technical foul with the Bulls trailing 86-74 with 2:10 left in the third quarter. Vans Old Skool Black . The (11-11-4) Jets are seventh in the Central Division with 26 points. Fifth place Dallas and sixth-seeded Nashville also have 26 points, but the Stars have three games in hand on Winnipeg while Nashville has two. Vans Shoes Clearance .Fucale will not only be one of the local boys, he is also a Montreal Canadiens draft pick and will have a huge cheering section when Canada opens the tournament Dec. http://www.vansshoesclearancesale.com/ .ca. Kerry, In Mondays Habs/Bruins game, there were three questionable/brutal calls against the Habs late in the game - Tomas Plekanec, then Douglas Murray, then Brendan Gallagher. Vans Shoes Wholesale .C. -- Cam Newton wasnt flawless on Sunday. Vans Old Skool White . Tensions rose in the first period when Penguins defenceman Brooks Orpik hit Bruins forward Loui Eriksson with what appeared to be a clean hit.NEW YORK -- Jason Collins started walking from the bench to the scorers table, fans rising out of their seats all around Barclays Center. He committed a foul five seconds after entering. His only shot barely hit the rim. Collins performance may not have been pretty, but everything else was great. Collins played the final minutes of a winning home debut with the Brooklyn Nets, who cooled off the Chicago Bulls with a 96-80 victory Monday night. "It was cool. It was a lot of fun to go into the game," Collins said. "The most important thing was that we got the win. Chicagos been playing really well as of late and for us to come out and really be -- I think we played more physical than they did tonight." Finally playing at home more than a week after returning to the NBA as the leagues first openly gay player, Collins checked in to a standing ovation from a sellout crowd of 17,732 that included former NBA Commissioner David Stern with 2:41 remaining. He grabbed a rebound and had one of the Nets NBA season high-tying 19 steals in their third straight victory. Deron Williams scored 20 points and Joe Johnson had 19 for the Nets (29-29), who got back to .500 for the first time since they were 2-2 after beating Utah on Nov. 5. D.J. Augustin scored 16 points off the bench for the sloppy Bulls, who turned it over 28 times, leading to 30 Nets points, and had their four-game winning streak snapped. The Bulls had a franchise-low three turnovers in their 109-90 victory over the New York Knicks on Sunday and had won nine of 10. But the Nets were too good in this one, building a series of comfortable leads and making the only intrigue down the stretch whether Collins would get in during his first home appearance for the Nets since Jan. 29, 2008, against Milwaukee in East Rutherford, N.J. A chant of "Jason Collins! Jason Collins!" broke out while Williams was shooting a free throw with the Nets leading 90-73 with 3:27 remaining. Fans finally got their wish less than a minute later -- though not because coach Jason Kidd was listening to them. "No, the game was out of hand, so I wanted to get those guys some rest," he said. "D-Will was shooting free throws. Couldnt put Twin in at that time, so I told him after the free throws that he would come in." Collins original 10-day contrract will expire Tuesday and the Nets plan to sign him to a second deal on Wednesday.dddddddddddd A Nets player from 2001-08, he has appeared in all five games since he signed on Feb. 23. Paul Pierce and Shaun Livingston each scored 14 points for the Nets, who were without starting centre Kevin Garnett for a second straight game because of back spasms. "Mentally, the Bulls have really had our numbers," Pierce said. "To be honest, if I was them Id feel like when they come play the Nets, they feel like they could beat us every time. I think the guys really had pride tonight to say, You know were tired of getting pushed around by the Bulls." Joakim Noah managed just 10 points, six rebounds and one assist for the Bulls, a day after finishing with 13 points, 14 assists and 12 rebounds in his fifth career triple-double. The All-Star centre rolled his right ankle early in the second half of that game and said it hurt after the game, but he was determined to play Monday in his hometown. The Bulls had dominated the first two meetings and beaten the Nets four straight times, but Brooklyn controlled this one most of the way in improving to 12-2 at home since Chicagos rout here on Christmas Day. "We smashed them in the mouth twice, its never going to be easy to come in to tough-minded team and do it again," Bulls forward Taj Gibson said. The Nets scored the first eight points, the last one on Williams free throw after Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau screamed his way to a technical foul after calling time. Their lead grew to 15, but the Bulls trimmed it to 27-18 by the end of the first quarter. Brooklyn led 50-42 at halftime, and Chicago started the second half just as bad as the first. The Nets scored the first seven to take a 57-42 lead when Williams set up Mason Plumlee for a dunk. "I think we had all intentions to play hard, but like I say, it didnt show," Augustin said. "Being down early, you cant come start the game down, you cant start the second half down, so that was our big mistakes, and then the turnovers killed us." NOTES: The Nets 19 steals were their most since finishing with 20 against Indiana on March 21, 1989. ... Brooklyn hadnt scored more than 23 points in a period against Chicago this season and surpassed that in both the first (27) and third (26). ' ' '