Clippers snap 3-game skid with win over Pelicans

INGLEWOOD — The Clippers cannot afford to look at other teams’ records, winning streaks or injured lists. They can’t worry about whether an opponent is tanking or trying to make a run at the postseason. Not when they have their own set of issues as the season heads into its final stretch.

With a depleted roster and a void at point guard, the Clippers lost three consecutive games and sank to four games below .500.

But they took a step forward in solving some of their concerns on Sunday night, first by getting Kawhi Leonard and John Collins back in the lineup and then notching a 137-117 victory against the surging New Orleans Pelicans at Intuit Dome.

“We still have a long way to go, and we still have to get better, but I think our guys are trying,” Coach Tyronn Lue said. “They’re trying to do what we’ve been trying to do the last 10 or so games, but it’s going to take some time. We understand that, but just give your best, give your all, try to do things the right way, and then we’ll figure it out from there.”

And after a rocky stretch in the first half, the Clippers (28-31) settled down to snap a three-game losing streak behind a balanced attack and move closer to evening their record.

Leonard, who had missed one game because of a sore left ankle, and Collins, who missed two games after suffering a head injury, were two of five players in double figures.

Leonard scored 23 points – the 37th consecutive game this season he has posted 20 or more points. It is the third-longest streak in franchise history, joining former Clippers great Bob McAdoo. He also had three rebounds, five assists and one steal.

Jordan Miller scored 19 points on 5-of-6 shooting and had a career-high seven assists, and center Brook Lopez rediscovered his 3-point shooting, connecting on 4-of-6 attempts to finish with 16 points. Derrick Jones Jr had 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting, while Collins finished with 15 points, seven rebounds and two steals, but left the game with 4:56 remaining after colliding with Pelicans’ Derik Queen.

The 6-foot-9 power forward appeared to hit his head on Queen’s shoulder and immediately grabbed his left arm. The team did not provide an update, leaving his status for Monday’s game at the Golden State Warriors uncertain.

The outlook for the Clippers looks even brighter with the addition of Darius Garland, the two-time All-Star point guard who has not played since being traded to the Clippers because of toe issues. He’s now healthy and will make his debut on Monday, giving the Clippers something more to celebrate than Chuck the Condor’s birthday.

And they are going to need Garland’s shooting and more focus on defense if they hope to stay in play for the Play-In tournament. They currently are ninth in the Western Conference, half-game ahead of the Portland Trail Blazers.

“(We’re) very excited,” Leonard said of Garland’s debut. “He’s happy to get back to playing. We are excited to see what he can contribute to us on the floor. It’s going to take some time to get his normal minutes back, but we’re happy to see him out there.”

Lue said that while he was “extremely happy” with the 20-point victory, he found several areas that are concerning to him as the team continues their stretch of five games in seven days.

“I didn’t think we played great offensively. I didn’t think our spacing was good. I didn’t think our attack, our speed and pacing to half court was really good,” Lue said. “So, we got to get back to doing that. And then defensively, we got to be better

The Clippers didn’t make it easy on themselves against the Pelicans, who came in on a four-game winning streak. They led by as many as 18 in the first half but found themselves fending off the Pelicans (19-43) in the third quarter.

New Orleans cut the Clippers’ lead to one, 85-84, on a putback layup by DeAndre Jordan at the 7:01 mark of the third quarter. The Clippers regained momentum on a 7-2 run, capped by Brook Lopez’s fourth 3-pointer, and led 107-94, going into the final quarter. From there, they accelerated their pace to put the Pelicans away.

The Clippers got off to a strong start in transition, running out to a 12-point lead before Leonard scored his first basket. His 3-point play with 4:49 left in the first quarter pushed the Clippers ahead, 26-12. He followed that with a running dunk off a rebound for a 16-point lead, and the Clippers led, 41-30, after the first quarter.

The Pelicans, who had won four consecutive games, took advantage of the Clippers’ lapse in defense to get back into the game and cut the lead to single digits, 52-43, on an 8-0 run less than five minutes into the second quarter.

Behind Trey Murphy and Jeremiah Fears, New Orleans continued to chip at the lead, pulling to within six, 76-70, as the first half ended.

“I think our defense once again (got us going),” Leonard said. “We started off great, the first six minutes, and they pretty much scored, I think like 50 points from that on to the end of the half. And once we caught up with our defense, we were able to keep going from there.”

Fears led the Pelicans with 28 points, Queen added 19 points and five rebounds, while Dejounte Murray added 17 points and Murphy had 16.