Los Angeles Clippers Defeat Lakers, Claim First Ever Divison Title
The Los Angeles Clippers beat their hometown rival Lakers on Sunday to win the team’s first-ever division title.
The team celebrated on the court after the 109-95 victory over the Lakers as the Clippers finally emerged from the shadow of the team they share the Staples Center with.
“It just feels like something we were supposed to do,” said Chris Paul, who had 24 points and 12 assists in the win. “It means we’re headed in the right direction. We’re not satisfied. We understand this is something small compared to the big picture.”
The game was historic for another reason. In winning, the Clippers swept the season series with the Lakers, the first time that has happened since the franchise moved to Los Angeles. The 1974-75 Buffalo Braves had the only other sweep of the Lakers in franchise history.
The win was still a bit anti-climactic for the Clippers. The team had the division title all but wrapped up and, even with a loss to the Lakers, still would have clinched if Utah won at Golden State.
The Clippers wanted to make sure they took care of business themselves however.
“We didn’t want to do it that way,” Paul said. “We wanted to clinch on our own terms.”
The Lakers were playing without starters Steve Nash and Metta World Peace, both of whom are out with injuries. Kobe Bryant had 25 points, 10 assists, and seven rebounds for the Lakers while Dwight Howard added 25 points.
The loss put the Lakers into a temporary tie with the Utah Jazz for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
“We’ve got a bigger challenge than worrying about beating the Clippers in one game,” Bryant said. “They obviously performed extremely well against us all four times. Our concern is playing well in order to get into the playoffs, get guys healthy, and go in there and see what we can do.”
The Clippers won their division title on the strength of good play all year but particularly at the end of 2012. The team reeled off a 17-game winning streak including a perfect 16-0 mark for December.
