LOS ANGELES - Arriving fashionably late, as the actor Mark Wahlberg, the singer Rihanna and the boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. did to their courtside seats Saturday, is a very Los Angeles thing to do. They were, in a way, very much like the basketball team they came to see.
But the Clippers, who fell into a 22-point hole in a game they desperately needed, made a lasting one by storming back in the final minutes to beat Oklahoma City, 101-99, before a frenzied, celebrity-filled crowd at Staples Center.
The victory was sealed when Russell Westbrook's 3-pointer in the final seconds rimmed out and Serge Ibaka's tip at the buzzer did not fall either.
When it was clear, the Clippers had the victory, Blake Griffin and Jamal Crawford embraced, and their teammates stormed to center court to celebrate. Instead of heading to Oklahoma City on Tuesday on the verge of elimination, the Clippers will arrive with the series even at two games apiece.
They survived 40 points from Kevin Durant and another 27 from Westbrook, as well as their horrendous start. The Clippers' Chris Paul, who had 23 points and 10 assists, was tremendous down the stretch, not only orchestrating the offense, but defending Durant, who is listed as nine inches taller than Paul.
Paul used his quickness to harass Durant into a key turnover, a poor pass that Darren Collison converted into a dunk to bring the Clippers within 90-89. Collison, who had 18 points off the bench, made a series of critical plays, including a drive to the basket that gave the Clippers the lead for good, and a dunk with 32.8 seconds that put them ahead, 101-97.
Westbrook answered with a quick basket, and Griffin, who had 25 points and 9 rebounds while contending with foul trouble, missed under the basket, giving Oklahoma City a final chance.
How the Clippers, given the Clippers' lack of playoff pedigree, would respond to a demoralizing loss at home Friday night was a frequently asked question.
Only five players - Matt Barnes, J. J. Redick, Glen Davis and the seldom-used Jared Dudley and Ryan Hollins - have played in a conference final.
The Clippers have also been pushed into an unwanted controversy after racist remarks made by the team's owner, Donald Sterling, were made public two days before Game 4 of their first-round series with Golden State.
'I've heard that a lot over the last two days,' Coach Doc Rivers said before the game. 'I just don't want to hear it. I'll put it that way. Listen, the playoffs are emotional. Obviously we've been through some other stuff. We can't run from that, but you just got to get through it. We have to be mentally tough.'
The Clippers were something less than that at the start. They looked panicky, from missing their first eight 3-point attempts to fouling Durant on a 3-pointer to an errant pass by DeAndre Jordan that lead to a layup by Westbrook that put Oklahoma City ahead, 29-7.
The crowd by then was quiet enough to hear the lone voice of Clipper Darrell, the team's longtime fan, carrying throughout the arena. Also among the crowd were N.B.A. Commissioner Adam Silver and Magic Johnson, who said in the wake of the Sterling scandal that he would not attend a Clippers game as long as Sterling owned the team. But once Sterling was issued a lifetime ban, Johnson said he was interested in being part of a new ownership group.
Johnson and Silver, who sat together, were besieged by fans throughout the game, each posing for photographs. On his way out, Johnson gave high-fives to everyone from Mayweather to C. J. Paul, the brother of the Clippers' guard, and members of the Clippers' dance team.
By then the arena was in a festive atmosphere. But the Clippers had spent much of the afternoon climbing up hill. They made a series of runs to get within striking distance, but never seemed to have enough to catch the Thunder until the end.
Posted by Unknown on Sunday, May 11, 2014 - Rating: 4.5
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