J.J. Redick: Saturday’s win over Hornets of ‘grind-it-out’ variety

Los Angeles Clippers guard Austin Rivers, right, shoots Charlotte Hornets guard Jeremy Lin defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 9, 2016, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Austin Rivers goes up for a shot while being defended by Charlotte’s Jeremy Lin/AP photo by Mark J. Terrill

 

The Clippers did not have a terrific day shooting the ball Saturday in their 97-83 victory over the visiting Charlotte Hornets. They even trailed 46-43 at halftime after a strong first quarter, after which they led 27-18.

Defense saved the day. The Hornets shot just 36.9 percent from the field, 30.4 percent (7 of 23) from 3-point range.

J.J. Redick, who scored 17 for the Clippers, afterward talked about the team’s stinginess.

“This was just going to be a grind-it-out game,” he said. “After that initial surge we had offensively, it seemed like the game really slowed down. It was a little slow, the pace was not great. Even when we were getting looks, they were not going down.

“Obviously, for us to win we had to embrace the defensive side of the ball and we did that. Three quarters for them under 20 points, is pretty phenomenal.”

The Clippers (24-13) have won eight in a row, the past seven without leading scorer Blake Griffin.

The Clippers shot 44 percent overall, just 25.8 percent (8 of 31) from 3-point range. Paul Pierce missed all eight of his 3-point attempts, Jamal Crawford (19 points) was 1 of 7 and Wes Johnson 1 of 5.