El Segundo, CA—Five Clippers scored in double-figures as Agua Caliente upset the South Bay Lakers, 109-99, on the road Saturday night, snapping the Lakers five-game winning streak. The Clippers’ latest victory may have come down to ball control, as the Clippers committed a season-low six turnovers, while forcing South Bay into 16. With the win, the Clippers improved to 7-5 on the season.

 

“We wanted to get a lot of stops and run in transition,” said forward LaDontae Henton. “We have a lot of shooters on this team and if we’re running we’re going to get a lot of open looks. We made defense a point of emphasis with South Bay. They have a lot of offensive weapons.”

 

The Clippers went off for 35 points in the first quarter, thanks to 12 points from Henton. Their lead stretched to as many as 20 in the third quarter, before the Lakers pulled within nine with just under 10 minutes to play.

 

“We watched a lot of film on South Bay and they’re one of the top teams in the league,” Henton said. “They’re great at overcoming deficits. We were prepared for them to go on a run and we were going to try and stop it and go on a run of our own.”

 

Henton led all scorers with 27 points, while Andre Dawkins and J.J. O’Brien each added 20. Forward Vitto Brown contributed 17 in his second night in a Clippers uniform, including a 50% (3-6) effort from deep. 

 

Guard Tyrone Wallace, who had 30 and 28 points against Memphis last Tuesday and Thursday, respectively, had an uncharacteristically quiet first two quarters of play, not scoring until mid-way through the second period. He closed in on a triple-double by the end of the night, however, with 20 points, nine rebounds and eight assists.

 

The Clippers return home to take on the Sioux Fall Skyforce on Wednesday night in a 7 p.m. tip at Citizens Business Bank Arena.