Preview: Clippers vs. Phoenix Suns

With Monday’s 110-93 win over the Denver Nuggets, the Clippers clinched home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

They are now in a three-way tie with the San Antonio Spurs and the Houston Rockets for second place in the Western Conference, and the three teams are only one game ahead of the sixth-place Memphis Grizzlies.

The Clippers are set to play in their final regular-season game Tuesday, facing the Suns in Phoenix in the second leg of a back-to-back.

The Clippers (55-26) have won six games in a row and 13 of their last 14 games.

“We’re playing some of our best basketball right now, that’s big,” Blake Griffin said after Monday’s win. “In the playoffs, it’s all about the matchup. We need to carry the momentum, but it’s going to be a completely different game.”

In Monday’s game, the Nuggets went on a 10-2 run at the top of the fourth quarter to turn a five-point deficit into a six-point advantage, 96-90, with just under six minutes left. Clippers Coach Doc Rivers then called a timeout. After the team’s talk, the Clippers went on a 14-1 run, holding the Nuggets scoreless for four minutes except for a Kenneth Faried free throw.

“We just kept talking, ‘We gonna win the game, we gonna win the game,’” Chris Paul said of what the team discussed in the huddle. “I think it just shows what we’re capable of when we just focus, lock in and do our principles. In the playoffs, it’s not going to be that easy to turn it on and turn it off. So it’s always good to win and learn at the same time.”

Griffin and Paul each nearly scored triple-doubles, Griffin finishing with 22 points, nine rebounds and eight assists, and Paul with 17 points, nine assists and seven rebounds. DeAndre Jordan had another 20-20 performance, finishing with 20 points and 21 rebounds.

The Suns have been eliminated from the playoffs, and are in 10th place in the Western Conference with a record of 39-42.

The Clippers have won each of their three games against the Suns this season, beating them 121-120 on Dec. 8; 120-100 on Jan. 25; and 120-107 on Nov. 15.