Brand Leads Clippers Again

It wouldn’t be surprising if the Golden State Warriors have had nightmares about the Clippers.

The Clippers continued to torment their Pacific Division rival, delivering another cruel blow Monday night while overcoming a 19-point deficit in a 96-93 victory in front of a stunned crowd at the Arena in Oakland.

A day after they were blown out, 105-92, at Staples Center, the Warriors watched as the Clippers again outworked them down the stretch in their seventh consecutive victory in the series.

The Clippers, who trailed, 74-55, with 3:50 remaining in the third quarter, again rallied behind their one-two punch of power forward Elton Brand and point guard Sam Cassell, with a late assist from rookie guard Daniel Ewing.

Brand scored 28 points overall and took command when the Clippers were in a deep hole in the third quarter.

Cassell scored 13 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter, including the game’s final two points on free throws with less than a second to play, and Ewing contributed eight of his 10 points, including two key three-pointers.

Shooting guard Jason Richardson scored a game-high 30 points, and power forward Troy Murphy had 16 points and a season-high 20 rebounds for the Warriors, but that wasn’t enough against the Clippers.

The Clippers made a late stand and the Warriors didn’t match their intensity, which holds to form from when they meet.

“We were dead tonight, but we are going to play till there are four zeroes on the clock, and that’s what we did,” Cassell said. “We gave ourselves a chance to win the game. We came up with some big stops and we made some big plays, that’s how we won the game.”

The Clippers’ most timely moment on defense occurred with 19.1 seconds remaining and them leading, 94-93, on Cassell’s two free throws at the 1:10 mark.

Point guard Baron Davis took an inbound pass from small forward Mike Dunleavy Jr. and held the ball near midcourt while guarded by swingman Quinton Ross.

Davis made his move with about six seconds showing on the clock, but he slipped as Ewing dived for the ball. Davis regained possession and called timeout with two seconds on the game clock and one on the shot clock.

“I crossed over and it just kind of got away from me,” said Davis, who had 13 points and 10 assists.

“I saw Ewing and just dove at the ball. I take full responsibility for this one.”

After the timeout, Dunleavy attempted a lob pass to Murphy, but they couldn’t hook up as the Clippers got the ball back with 1.2 seconds left.

Cassell took a pass from backup point guard Shaun Livingston, was fouled by Warrior guard Derek Fisher and connected on the free throws to seal the victory.

“Being down 19, we just kept fighting,” Brand said.

“We figured if we tightened up our defense, the same shots they were making they would miss, and they did.”

Golden State overwhelmed the Clippers with a 10-0 spurt to open the third quarter, turning an eight-point halftime lead into a 64-46 advantage with 8:35 remaining in the quarter, and the lead eventually went to 19.

The Clippers then went to Brand and he led their comeback, scoring 11 points in the quarter as they pulled within 10, 76-66, to start the fourth. That’s Cassell’s favorite time of the game, and the 12-year veteran enjoyed it again Monday.

He got hot, applying pressure to the Warriors, who suddenly weren’t connecting on as many of their long-range shots.

Cassell and Ewing sparked a 13-4 run than enabled the Clippers to take an 89-87 lead on Ewing’s two free throws with 3:16 left.

That marked the Clippers’ first lead since they were ahead, 15-14, in the first quarter.

“I just have to be prepared,” Ewing said. “That’s the way I’ve been all season. I come in and try to stay prepared for whenever my time is called.

“You never know when it’s going to be, but tonight was my time. It was my time to come in and help our team get a big win.”