Five takeaways from the Clippers' 114-89 win over the Lakers - Los Angeles Times
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Five takeaways from the Clippers’ 114-89 win over the Lakers

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Here are five takeaways from the Clippers’ 114-89 win over the Lakers on Wednesday evening.

1. Is it a Clippers town? The Clippers won five consecutive games and nine of their last 10 against the Lakers. How lopsided was this win? The Clippers led by as many as 43 points. Big wins over the Lakers are almost becoming a trend for the Clippers. In March, the Clippers beat the Lakers by 48 points, dealing them their worst loss in franchise history. The Lakers still have one big edge though -- they’ve won 16 NBA championships while the Clippers haven’t won any.

2. Kobe Bryant has a nonexistent shooting night. Bryant had four points on two-for-12 shooting from the field on Wednesday. Sure he’s been playing the facilitator role lately, and he finished with seven assists against the Clippers, but just four points? Even Tarik Black scored more points than Bryant (five points).

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Said Bryant: “I was trying to rush things, change momentum to get us back in a little bit, but I didn’t play any different than I normally play.â€

3. Steve Ballmer should’ve been a dancer. After the first quarter, Fergie surprised Staples Center crowd with a live performance. She took the court and sang and, well, Ballmer went nuts. He flailed his arms and twitched his legs to the music from his courtside seat near the Clippers’ bench. It was an incredible site to behold.

Said Matt Barnes: “You can’t have everything. You can’t have money and moves.â€

4. The Clippers’ moved the ball well. The Clippers finished with 29 assists on their 40 field goals. Each of the Clippers’ starters scored in double figures, and every player scored except for Ekpe Udoh. Blake Griffin had 27 points on nine for 13 shooting and Chris Paul had 24 points on nine for 15 shooting. No one on the Lakers scored more than 14 points.

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“It was just beautiful to watch,†Clippers Coach Doc Rivers said of his team’s ball movement.

5. The Clippers controlled their turnovers. After finishing with 21 turnovers in their loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Monday, the Clippers kept much better control of the ball on Wednesday, finishing with just six. No one on the team had more than one turnover, including Chris Paul, who had just one turnover in 31 minutes and 12 seconds. The Lakers, on the other hand, finished with 13 turnovers, six of which were committed by Bryant.

Follow Melissa Rohlin on Twitter @melissarohlin

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