The Los Angeles Clippers thrashed the Boston Celtics 106-77 to register their 15th straight victory and become the first team to post such a record since the Celtics themselves did it four years ago.
Matt Barnes matched his season high with 21 points for the Clippers, while Jamal Crawford had 17 points. Chris Paul finished with only eight points, although he did have 11 assists, while Caron Butler netted 14 points.
"Shows we have a lot of depth. I've probably sat out more fourth quarters this season than any of my previous seven seasons," the Associated Press quoted Paul as saying. "It's a really good feeling now, a good vibe because everyone is enjoying it."
Blake Griffin added 15 points and chipped in with eight rebounds, while Lamar Odom grabbed 13 rebounds to help the Clippers improve their record to an NBA best 23-6.
"Some people may be impressed by the record, but we can't be," Paul said. "We're not measured by our regular season wins."
For the Celtics, Kevin Garnett scored 16 points in six of 11 attempts from the floor, while Paul Pierce and Jeff Green added 12 points apiece.
Jason Terry and Rajon Rondo finished with 10 points each, but could not stop Los Angeles from winning the game with their largest-ever margin against Boston. On Dec. 27, 2006, they had defeated Boston 100-77.
"I thought we came out with too much respect. We wanted to back off some of their bigs and Blake hit some shots that he doesn't usually hit," Garnett said.
"They came out with a lot of confidence and they packed the paint and that is the reason why have won 15 in a row. They had us on our heels all night."
The Clippers outscored the Celtics 30-20 in the first quarter and 30-27 in the second quarter to enter the second half with a 13-point lead.
Boston was a little better in the opening quarter of the second half, but was still outscored 20-22.
In the fourth quarter, the Clippers' went on a 9-0 run behind Barnes, who scored five of them, to extend their lead to 90-67.
"We just want to continue to build good habits," Barnes said. "We jumped on them early and didn't let them have any breathing room."
The Clippers starters and reserves both had 53 points each.
"It still feels like we can get better," said Ronny Turiaf, who had four points and five rebounds. "We're just having fun. We're in the now. We're just trying to ride the wave."
The Clippers out-rebounded Boston 44-40 and made 41 of 85 attempts from the field, whereas the Celtics could make only 29 of 72.
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