LOS ANGELES — Baron Davis scored
25 points and the resurgent Clippers rallied to hold off the Lakers
102-91 Wednesday night, snapping a nine-game losing streak in the
so-called battle of Los Angeles.
Chris Kaman added 21 points and 14
rebounds, Eric Gordon 18, Rasual Butler 14 and Marcus Camby 13 rebounds
for the Clippers, who beat the defending NBA champions for the first
time since April 12, 2007.
The Clippers have won five straight at home for the first time since a six-game winning streak from Nov. 2-18, 2006.
Kobe Bryant scored 33 points, Andrew
Bynum added 15 points and 14 rebounds and Shannon Brown 15 as the
Lakers' four-game winning streak ended.
The Lakers defeated the Clippers
99-92 on opening night, but the Clippers have improved considerably
since then despite still not having No. 1 draft pick Blake Griffin, who
is injured.
The Clippers twice led by 15 points
in the third, maintaining a perilous lead after Bryant's 13-point
barrage highlighted a 23-11 scoring spurt that drew the Lakers within
two.
The Lakers scored six straight to
open the fourth and tie the game at 79 on Ron Artest's step-back jumper.
The teams traded leads for the next few possessions until the Clippers
ran off nine straight for a 92-83 lead. Gordon had four in a row and
Butler capped the spurt with a 3-pointer.
It was part of a 19-8 game-ending run
for the Clippers, who had their long-suffering fans on their feet and
cheering wildly in the closing minutes.
The Clippers used a 14-3 run,
including nine straight, to end the first half ahead 52-43. Six
different players contributed, with Davis scoring four in a row.
The Lakers shot 34 percent in the half, got outrebounded and had nine fewer assists than the Clippers' 17.
The Clippers extended their lead to
64-49 before Bryant put on a show in his purple road jersey. He
displayed all of his MVP moves, opening with an alley-oop dunk, hitting
a 3-pointer that bounced once on the rim and went in, making a fade-away
jumper and a fast-break driving dunk that got the Lakers to 73-63.
Bynum's basket finally got them into single digits even though they
didn't tie the game until the fourth.
Notes
Forward Pau Gasol missed another
game with a strained left hamstring, but Lakers coach Phil Jackson said
he went through his first pain-free rehab session Tuesday. … The
Lakers dropped to 16-8 overall without Gasol in the lineup since he
joined the team three years ago. … The Lakers fell to 6-3 in the
second game of back-to-backs. … The Clippers recorded their second
sellout with 19,388. … They haven't won the season series since
1992-93.