Clippers offer Warriors first aid

OAKLAND -- They had to win a game sometime.

The Clippers found the Golden State Warriors still in the winless state of discord they left them in after the season opener and were itching to keep them there Friday night.

But Golden State had other plans, handing the Clippers a 122-105 loss in a fast-paced game in front of a sellout crowd of 19,596 at Oracle Arena.

The Clippers dropped to 5-3 overall, 2-2 on the road, and have lost three of their last four games. The Warriors got their first win after six losses.

“They came out and were more aggressive than we were,” Coach Mike Dunleavy said. “We got ‘beasted’ on the boards. They were just more physical than we were tonight.”

The Clippers, who do not play Golden State again until March, tonight face another team off to a disappointing start and rabid for a victory, when the Chicago Bulls visit Staples Center.

At least the Clippers got a glimpse Friday of how a famished team plays. Al Harrington scored 27 points and Andris Biedrins had 23 points and a career high-tying 18 rebounds for the Warriors, who had seven players score in double digits and out-rebounded the Clippers, 52-43.

Tim Thomas scored 25 points, hitting six three-point shots, and Corey Maggette -- listed as doubtful for tonight because of a strained right hamstring -- had 22 points and 12 rebounds for the Clippers, who also lost rookie Al Thornton to a sprained ankle early in the third quarter.

They trailed by as many as 14 points in the first half before closing to within two in the third quarter. From there it was too much Harrington, too much Biedrins and -- believe it or not -- too much Patrick O’Bryant.

O’Bryant, who’d scored all of two points in his last five games, poured in eight during the Warriors’ pivotal third-quarter run.

Golden State, the final team to win a game in the NBA, came in having allowed a league-worst 118.2 points per game.

Their videographers had been faster than the team. Kelenna Azubuike’s dunk over Chris Kaman in the Clippers’ season-opening 120-114 victory, which left Kaman in need of three stitches, was featured on the pregame highlight reel.

Before the game, Warriors Coach Don Nelson appeared in a gloomy state. “Wow,” he said when reporters laid their recorders in front of him. “I don’t have that much to say.”

But dispositions can change quickly with a win. Nelson can now look forward to the return of Stephen Jackson, who served the last of his seven-game suspension, and versatile forward Mickael Pietrus, who missed Friday’s game because of personal reasons.

“In this league any team that’s on any kind of losing streak, the players have a lot of pride and they are going to come out -- not that they aren’t playing hard -- but more focused and playing hard,” Dunleavy said.

“They can play bad one night and the next night get on a roll,” said Kaman, who had another double-double with 20 points and 12 rebounds. “They like to run and it’s like get your track shoes on.”

Harrington started the meet by converting a four-point play and the Warriors didn’t slow much from there, taking a 64-55 lead into halftime. Harrington (15 points), Biedrins (18 points, 12 rebounds) and Matt Barnes (14 points) combined to shoot 18 for 26 in the first half.

In some ways it seemed like the Warriors night from the start. They built a solid halftime lead despite Baron Davis’ missing all nine of his shots, though he finished with 21 points.

Maggette scored 17 points in the half on seven-for-nine shooting, and Kaman added 11 points.

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jonathan.abrams@latimes.com