Clippers defeat San Antonio Spurs, 114-105, to even playoff series

Chris Paul was not going to have another bad game.

The Clippers’ point guard led all scorers with 34 points on 11-for-19 shooting and had seven assists and only two turnovers to push the Clippers a 114-105 win over the San Antonio Spurs in Game 4, tying the first-round playoff series at 2-2.

Paul’s excellent game Sunday came after his worst performance of the season in Game 3 on Friday, when he had more turnovers (six) than assists (four), and only seven points on three-for-11 shooting.

The Clippers led by as many as 14 points in the fourth quarter before Kawhi Leonard made back-to-back three-pointers to cut the Clippers’ lead to eight, 106-98, with 2 minutes and 29 seconds left. The Clippers then went back up by 12 points with under a minute left.

There were 18 lead changes and nine ties, quite a change from Game 3, in which the Spurs never trailed and led by as much as 37 points.

Blake Griffin had 20 points on nine-for-17 shooting, 19 rebounds and seven assists. J.J. Redick had 17 points on six-for-12 shooting, and DeAndre Jordan had 14 rebounds and six points.

Both Austin Rivers and Jamal Crawford gave the Clippers a huge punch off the bench. Rivers had 16 points on seven-for-eight shooting, and Crawford had 15 points on six-for-13 shooting.

Paul continued to play aggressive in the fourth quarter despite picking up his fifth personal foul with 8:25 left.

The Clippers out-shot the Spurs from the field, 53.6% to 44%.

The Spurs were led by Leonard, who had 26 points on 10-for-19 shooting, seven rebounds and five assists.

Tim Duncan had 22 points on eight-for-13 shooting, 14 rebounds and three assists. And Tony Parker added 18 points on seven-for-15 shooting, though he was only four for eight from the free-throw line.

The teams return to L.A. for Game 5, which will be at Staples Center on Tuesday. Game 6 will be in San Antonio on Thursday.

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The Clippers went on a 5-0 run to take an 13-point lead, 93-80, over the Spurs with 9:42 left. The Spurs then scored two baskets to cut their deficit to single-digits, 93-84, with 9:00 remaining.

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Jamal Crawford drew a foul as he shot a baseline jumper just inside of the three-point line. He then converted the free throw, to give the Clippers their biggest lead of the game at 10 points, 88-78, with 10:29 left.

Clippers 81, Spurs 76 (end of third quarter)

This one is going to go down to the wire, with the Clippers taking only a five-point lead into the fourth quarter. Jamal Crawford made a running bank shot with 5.5 seconds left in the third to give the Clippers their biggest lead of the game at seven points, 81-74. Manu Ginobili then made two free throws.

The Spurs sent Chris Paul, a 90% free-throw shooter, to the charity stripe six times in the final 2 minutes and 14 seconds of the third. Paul made each of those shots.

Paul leads the Clippers with 24 points, six assists and two turnovers. Blake Griffin has 18 points on eight-for-12 shooting, nine rebounds and six assists.

Austin Rivers has scored 11 points for the Clippers off the bench on five-for-six shooting. And DeAndre Jordan has a game-high 13 rebounds to go along with four points.

Kawhi Leonard leads the Spurs with 18 points, six rebounds and five assists. Patty Mills has 14 points. And Tim Duncan scored 10 points in the third quarter and has 12 in the game.

The Clippers are outshooting the Spurs, 53.2% to 43.1%. The Spurs are 16 for 22 (72.7%) from the free-throw line, while the Clippers are 11 for 16 (68.8%).

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Tim Duncan has 10 third-quarter points after making a layup with 5 minutes and 22 seconds left. The Clippers are up, 65-64.

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Tim Duncan picked up his third foul after hitting Blake Griffin’s arm as he attempted a layup. Griffin made the free throw completing the three-point play to put the Clippers up 59-55 with eight minutes left.

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Clippers 51, Spurs 47 (halftime)

The Clippers lead the San Antonio Spurs at halftime in a game that has had 12 lead changes and six ties.

Chris Paul made a three-pointer with just over one minute left to give the Clippers their biggest advantage at six points, 51-45. Tony Parker then made a layup with just under a minute left to cut the Spurs’ deficit to four.

The Clippers are outshooting the Spurs from the field, 51.2% to 41.3%. The Clippers have five turnovers, while the Spurs have three. And the Clippers have sent the Spurs to the free-throw line 10 times while they’ve only shot four free throws.

Chris Paul has 12 points on five-for-nine shooting, four assists, two steals and one turnover. J.J. Redick has 12 points on four-for-10 shooting. Blake Griffin has eight points on four-for-seven shooting, five rebounds and five assists. DeAndre Jordan has 11 rebounds to go along with four points. And Austin Rivers has seven points off the bench on three-for-four shooting.

Kawhi Leonard leads the Spurs with 11 points on five-for-10 shooting and four assists. Tony Parker and Patty Mills each have 10 points.

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Clippers Coach Doc Rivers called a timeout with 3 minutes and 39 seconds left after Manu Ginobili penetrated the lane and made a layup for the Spurs. The Clippers have a one-point lead, 41-40.

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Austin Rivers has given the Clippers a much-needed boost off the bench. He has seven points on three-for-seven shooting, helping the Clippers take a 32-29 lead over the Spurs with just over nine minutes left in the second quarter.

Clippers 25, Spurs 25 (end of first quarter)

The Clippers opened Game 4 sharing the ball and executing with a nice offensive flow, having 10 assists on their 12 field goals.

The Clippers went on a 6-0 run at the beginning of the quarter. The Spurs then went on an 8-0 run to take an 8-6 lead with 7 minutes and 49 seconds left in the first.

The Clippers are outshooting the Spurs from the field, 52.2% to 45.5%.

Each of the Clippers starters have scored. Blake Griffin leads the team with six points on three-for-four shooting. Chris Paul, who had more turnovers (six) than assists (four) in Game 3, has four points, three assists and one turnover. Jamal Crawford, who made only one of his 11 field goal attempts in Game 3, has made two of his three shots in Game 4 and has four points.

Kawhi Leonard has eight points on four-for-eight shooting for the Spurs. Tony Parker has eight points on three-for-five shooting.

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Tony Parker made a layup with just under five minutes left to give the Spurs a 14-13 lead. The Spurs are outshooting the Clippers from the field, 58.3% to 50%. Kawhi Leonard leads all scorers with eight points on four-for-seven shooting.

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The Clippers opened Game 4 with a 6-0 run, making each of their three field goal attempts. Chris Paul, J.J. Redick and DeAndre Jordan have each scored. The Spurs missed both of their field goal attempts.

Pregame

The San Antonio Spurs have a 2-1 lead over the Clippers in their best-of-seven first-round playoff series, with Game 4 set for Sunday at 12:30 p.m. PDT in San Antonio.

In Game 3, the Spurs led by as many as 37 points en route to a 100-73 win, holding the Clippers to the fewest points they’ve scored all season.

In that game, Chris Paul had more turnovers (six) than assists (four) for the first time this season, Jamal Crawford made only one of his 11 field goal attempts and J.J. Redick and Matt Barnes combined for four-for-12 shooting. Blake Griffin had a team-high 14 points, but it took him 15 shots to get them.

In Game 1, the Clippers led by as much as 20 points on their way to a 15-point, 107-92 victory. Game 2 went to overtime, with the Spurs pulling off a 111-107 win.

melissa.rohlin@latimes.com

Twitter: @melissarohlin