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Crawford, Clips down Cavs

Mar 2, 2013 - 4:57 AM Cleveland, OH (Sports Network) - Jamal Crawford tallied 24 points, and the Los Angeles Clippers got double-doubles from Blake Griffin and Chris Paul in a 105-89 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Griffin ended with 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Paul contributed 11 points and 15 assists, as the Clippers notched their fourth straight win and eighth in their last nine tries.

Caron Butler donated 13 points for the Clippers, who gained their first victory in Cleveland since March 10, 2002, the year before LeBron James was drafted by the Cavaliers. This was just their fifth win in the last 21 meetings overall against the Cavs.

The Cavaliers were simply overmatched, especially considering Kyrie Irving (hyperextended right knee) was out for a third straight game. Tristan Thompson had 15 points and 12 rebounds, while Dion Waiters scored 17, one more than C.J. Miles.

An alley-oop jam by Alonzo Gee brought the Cavs within 62-59 halfway through the third quarter, but the Clippers again pulled away by scoring the next seven points. Griffin capped the burst with a dangerous alley-oop slam off a feed from Paul. Griffin, who was fouled on the play by Tyler Zeller, appeared to have a bit of discomfort in his back, but he then hit the ensuing free throw.

Los Angeles held a 77-68 lead after three quarters and after Matt Barnes nailed a 3-pointer to open the fourth, the double-digit margin remained the rest of the game. The lead reached its apex at 23 points.

"Our game plan was great. Whether Kyrie played or not, with him and Dion Waiters, we were going to trap the ball screen," Paul said. "For a moment there we couldn't slow (Waiters) down. We couldn't contain him. For most of the game we tried to control him and not let him get going."

Lamar Odom's bank shot in the final minute of the opening quarter widened LA's lead to 31-23 after the first stanza. The difference was 54-45 at the half.

"They have guys who can make plays. They have Chris Paul, who is a double- double guy and then you have Jamal Crawford who can score 20 points in five minutes," Thompson said. "They have guys who can make plays and make shots. That's how they get up and down the floor so quickly and score a lot of buckets."

Game Notes

The Clippers, who have never had a winning percentage above .500 on the road for an entire season, are 20-12 as the away team this season. They need one more victory to ensure a winning road mark for the 2012-13 campaign ... The Clippers moved to 3-15 all-time at Quicken Loans Arena. They had lost 10 in a row at the Q prior to Friday.