Five takeaways from the Clippers’ 97-83 victory over Charlotte

The Clippers defeated the Charlotte Hornets, 97-83, on Saturday afternoon at Staples Center. Here are five takeaways from the game:

1) The Clippers somehow defeated the Charlotte Hornets without shooting any free throws in the first half.

For the game, the Clippers shot only 10 free throws, making nine.

Chris Paul, who led the Clippers in scoring with 25 points, didn’t go to the free-throw line one time.

DeAndre Jordan went to the line four times, making three of them. Luc Mbah a Moute, J.J. Redick and Austin Rivers were all two for two from the free-throw line.

“We still need to get to the free-throw line,” Paul said. “But it just shows we have the ability to win in different ways.”

Charlotte was 14 of 19 from the free-throw line.

2) The Clippers are serious about playing defense.

If you take away the 28 points they gave up to the Hornets in the second quarter, a quarter in which Clippers Coach Doc Rivers said his second unit was upset because it felt that the group was too lax on defense, the Clippers allowed just 55 points in three quarters.

They held the Hornets to 37 second-half points on 34.2% shooting.

3) Jordan continues to rebound like a machine.

He had 19 boards against Charlotte, seven on offense.

That gave the Clippers extra offensive opportunities because Jordan keeps the possession alive.

He now is second in the NBA in rebounds, averaging 13.5 a game.

4) The Clippers weren’t very good from three-point range.

They made just 25.8% of their three-pointers.

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Clippers guards Chris Paul (3) and Jamal Crawford (11) celebrate after defeating the Charlotte Hornets, 97-83, on Saturday afternoon at Staples Center.

  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

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Hornets guard Jeremy Lin (7) tries to score between Clippers forward Wesley Johnson (33) and center Cole Aldrich (45) during the second half.

  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

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Clippers center DeAndre Jordan throws down a dunk over Hornets forward Marvin Williams (2) during the second half.

  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

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Clippers center DeAndre Jordan (6) reacts after a dunk against the Hornets in the second half.

  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

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Clippers forward Wesley Johnson (33) beats Hornets center Cody Zeller (40) for a defensive rebound in the second half.

  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

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Clippers guard Jamal Crawford tries to steal the ball from Hornets guard Jeremy Lin (7) during the second half.

  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

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Hornets guard Jeremy Lin (7) scrambles after a loose ball between Clippers guards Chris Paul (3) and J.J. Redick (4) during the second half.

  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

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Clippers guard Austin Rivers (25) sets up the offense while defended by Hornets guard Jeremy Lin in the second half.

  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

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Clippers guard Pablo Prigioni (9) makes a behind-the-back pass around Hornets forward Spencer Hawes to teammate Cole Aldrich during the first half Saturday at Staples Center.

  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

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Clippers guard Chris Paul (3) is fouled by Hornets center Cody Zeller (40) during the first half.

  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

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Clippers guard Austin Rivers (25) forces Hornets guard Jeremy Lamb (3) to pass rather than shoot after driving to the basket during the first half.

  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

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Clippers forward Paul Pierce (34) keeps control of the ball after contact with Hornets forward Marvin Williams (2) in the first half.

  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

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Clippers center Cole Aldrich (45) grabs an offensive rebound after colliding with Hornets forward Marvin Williams (2) and center Cody Zeller (40) in the second half.

  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

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Clippers forward Paul Pierce cuts off a drive by Hornets guard Jeremy Lin (7) during the first half.

  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

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Clippers forward Wesley Johnson, left, and center DeAndre Jordan (6) reach for a rebound along with Hornets forward Spencer Hawes during the first half.

  (Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)

Paul Pierce didn’t help matters, missing all eight of his three-pointers. Jamal Crawford was one-for-seven from three-point range and Wesley Johnson one-for-five.

5) The Clippers took good care of the basketball, turning it over just nine times.

What’s hard to believe is that Paul had five of the turnovers.

Sure, he’s the point guard and has the ball in his hands the most.

But Paul values the basketball and is one of the best in assist-to-turnover ratio.

broderick.turner@latimes.com

Twitter:@BA_Turner