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Five takeaways from the Clippers’ 108-98 loss to Portland

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The season’s not over but it sure feels like it for the undermanned Clippers after a 108-98 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers in Game 5 of their first-round playoff series Wednesday night at Staples Center. The Clippers will need to win Game 6 on Friday night at the Moda Center in Portland to force a winner-take-all Game 7 on Sunday back at Staples Center. That seems unlikely with Chris Paul and Blake Griffin both out because of injuries. Here are five takeaways from Game 5:

Coach Doc Rivers meets with the media following the Clippers’ 108-98 loss to the Blazers in Game 5 of the NBA playoffs.

1. Adrenaline only lasts so long. The Clippers predictably came out with energy and carried it through the entire first half. After an extended lull to start the third quarter in which they missed their first 10 shots and went scoreless until Jeff Green made two free throws after 5:36 had expired, they eventually finished the quarter on a 9-0 run to tie the score. Then they fell flat for the entire fourth quarter. “They wanted to win,” Clippers Coach Doc Rivers said. “They were just up, and sometimes you get up too much. They heard the same thing that you guys said. You know, for 48 hours, hard game, can they win? So I liked the emotion, but they didn’t sustain it. Like, the pace we played at in the first half was terrific, we just couldn’t sustain the pace.”

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2. The Clippers’ shooting guards couldn’t shoot. Jamal Crawford and J.J. Redick both started and combined to make 13 of 40 shots (32.5%), which felt like a repeat from the latter games of the Clippers’ series against the Houston Rockets last season. Crawford’s struggles were especially pronounced, as he made six of 23 shots, including one of five three-pointers. “I can’t worry about shot misses or minutes,” Crawford said. “I just have to worry about trying to help us win, and as long as my heart is in the right place, trying to help us win, the rest will take care of itself.” Said Redick: “I felt like, especially early on, I took some shots that I would love to take again. Jamal, same thing. We missed some shots.”

Do the Clippers have a chance at winning Game 6 against the Blazers and forcing a Game 7? Bill Plaschke, Ben Bolch and Lindsey Thiry discuss after a 108-98 loss in Game 5.

3. Damian Lillard and C.J. McCollum got going in the fourth quarter and the Clippers didn’t. Lillard scored 16 of his 22 points and McCollum had nine of his 27 in the fourth quarter, sparking a 37-27 run by the Trail Blazers to end the game. Now they want to finish off the Clippers. “We want to close the series out,” McCollum said. “We’ve got a unique opportunity here to play an elimination game at home, and we want to make sure we take full advantage of it.”

4. Any comparisons between the spot the Clippers are in now and after Game 5 of their first-round series last season aren’t valid. Sure, they overcame a 3-2 deficit against the San Antonio Spurs by winning Game 6 in San Antonio to force a Game 7 that they took after Paul banked in his legendary jumper in the closing seconds. But the Clippers had Paul and Griffin for both of those games, even if Paul did strain his hamstring in Game 7 and gut out the rest of the game. The Clippers know what will happen if they don’t prevail in Game 6 after losing their first two games of the series in Portland. “I don’t want to equate a basketball game to death,” Redick said, “but it is do or die. We have to figure out a way to win the game and get it back here in front of our home crowd for Game 7.”

5. Doc Rivers should take another crack at his starting lineup for Game 6. He went with Crawford for the added scoring punch and Paul Pierce for spacing purposes, but neither move worked out. Crawford’s poor shooting reflected his 44 minutes of playing time and Pierce hardly resembled someone worthy of playoff basketball, hoisting an airball among his three missed shots and going scoreless in nine minutes. “Paul didn’t have a great game tonight, obviously, but we thought being a veteran, it was the right thing,” Rivers said. “We wanted to start with shooting on the floor, which I thought even though he didn’t make shots, I thought the spacing was effective for us. So it was OK.” Forward Luc Mbah a Moute, who logged a DNP-Coach’s Decision after starting for most of the season, showed some dexterity by heading for the tunnel with about 20 seconds left in the game. Another alternative for Rivers would be to put Mbah a Moute back into the starting lineup for his defensive presence and substitute Jeff Green for Crawford as a starter. Green was strong with 17 points on six-for-10 shooting to go with three steals. Crawford moving to the second unit would reduce his minutes and preserve him for the fourth quarter, when the Clippers will most need him to make shots.

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ben.bolch@latimes.com

Twitter: @latbbolch

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