Marcus Morris posted his best performance of the season with 24 points and 11 rebounds and the Los Angeles Clippers defeated the Phoenix Suns 111-95 on Monday night in their first game since the Western Conference final.
The Suns beat the Clippers in a six-game series and advanced to the NBA Finals, where they lost to Milwaukee. Phoenix has kept pace this season and has the best record in the West at 21-5.
Both teams played Monday without some of their starters: The Suns did not have Deandre Ayton and Devin Booker, while Paul George and Kawhi Leonard were absent for the Clippers.
Reggie Jackson scored 19 points and Terance Mann finished with 17 and nine rebounds for the Clippers, who chained their fourth victory.
Cam Johnson was Phoenix’s best with 17 points off the bench. Mikal Bridges contributed 16 points to the Suns account and Chris Paul could not pass the nine points and eight assists in front of his former team.
Phoenix’s only advantage came from Jae Crowder’s first basket of the game. They missed 12 of their 13 shots at the start as the Clippers took a 10-point lead. Crowder and JaVale McGee each committed two fouls in the first quarter.
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