LOS ANGELES — Despite playing without forward Blake Griffin and center DeAndre Jordan, the Los Angeles Clippers blitzed the Miami Heat 104-90 Wednesday night at Staples Center.
Backup center Cole Aldrich, who started in place of Jordan, scored 19 points and grabbed seven rebounds, while point guard Chris Paul had 15 points, 12 assists and six rebounds, sparking the Clippers to their 10th consecutive victory.
Forward Paul Pierce and guard Jamal Crawford scored 15 points apiece for Los Angeles (26-13). Pierce also collected nine rebounds.
Griffin missed his ninth contest with a partially torn left quad tendon, but Jordan’s absence was a surprise before the game, when it was revealed he had pneumonia. It ended Jordan’s NBA-best consecutive games streak at 360.
Guard Gerald Green scored 19 points to lead the Heat, who lost their third in a row. Guard Dwyane Wade finished with 16 points and eight rebounds, while forward Chris Bosh had 11 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists for Miami (22-17).
Heat guard Goran Dragic missed the contest with a calf injury.
Initially, Miami didn’t seem to miss a beat without Dragic, leading by as much as 16 in the first half before Los Angeles cut the deficit to single digits.
A 9-3 run to close the half allowed the Clippers to pull within 52-45 at the break. Los Angeles rallied despite shooting only 39.2 percent to 52.5 percent for the Heat. However, 11 turnovers by the Heat to only three for the Clippers in the first half didn’t help their cause.
Overall, the Clippers shot 42.6 percent to 44.3 percent for Miami. Los Angeles canned 11 of 25 (44 percent) from 3-point range to nine of 24 (37.5 percent) for the Heat.
In the third quarter, the Clippers opened with a 24-5 spurt, which included a 13-0 run, for a 69-57 advantage after an Aldrich hook shot with 6:11 left. Los Angeles led 79-69 heading into the final period.
The Clippers outscored the Heat 34-17 in the third.
A 10-2 run to kick off the fourth quarter blew the game open for the Clippers.
NOTES: Clippers C DeAndre Jordan was determined to perform despite a case of pneumonia. Jordan texted Doc Rivers several times earlier Wednesday, assuring the coach he could play through the illness. “I can tell you he was doing everything he could to try to play in this game,” Rivers said. “I thought even the thought of it was ludicrous, but not him.” … Clippers F Blake Griffin, who missed his ninth game with a torn left quad tendon, began running this week. There is no timetable for his return though. … The Heat are 11-5 against Western Conference clubs, the best mark by an Eastern Conference team. … Miami resumes its six-game swing at Denver against the Nuggets on Friday. … Los Angeles hosts the Sacramento Kings on Saturday.