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MINNEAPOLIS -- The excuses came ready made for the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday night. wholesale jerseys . Blake Griffin and Jamal Crawford were out with injuries. They were playing their fourth game of a five-game road trip. Chris Paul would have none of that. "I said, Fellas, lets be who we are. We got who we got, lets keep the train moving," Paul told them. "We said, No excuses." And no mercy on a Minnesota Timberwolves team that just wants this massively disappointing season to end. Darren Collison had 28 points and seven assists, and the Clippers didnt miss a beat with Griffin out with a back injury in a 114-104 victory. Paul had 22 points, nine assists and seven rebounds, and Matt Barnes scored 19 points for the Clippers (53-22). Griffin, the teams leading scorer, warmed up before the game but wasnt quite ready after being injured on Saturday night against Houston. Jared Dudley started in his place and scored 16 points, while DeAndre Jordan grabbed a career-high 24 rebounds to help the Clippers pull within two games of Oklahoma City for the second seed in the West. "Everyone keeps track," Dudley said. "We know we have another game against (the Thunder) at home and were just trying to win every game. We want that 2 seed and we know the 1 seed could be tough because San Antonio hasnt lost in a month or so." Kevin Love had 20 points, 13 rebounds and four assists for the Wolves. Crawford was out with a calf injury, but a lacklustre effort by the Wolves starters on the second night of a back-to-back made up for his absence. "Theyve got to bust it," Wolves coach Rick Adelman said. "They owe themselves that. Owe their teammates that; owe the organization, the fans." The Clippers hit 12 of 30 3-pointers and blew the game wide open with a 31-5 run in the third quarter. The Wolves led 59-57 early in the period, but Collison scored 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting in the quarter. The Clippers put their foot on the gas, scoring 13 points in transition during the surge, and punctuating it with a lob pass from Paul to Jordan for an 86-64 lead. Nikola Pekovic left seven minutes into the game when his bothersome right ankle flared up again, and only a spirited effort by Shabazz Muhammad (11 points) and the Timberwolves bench in the fourth quarter kept the game from getting out of hand. The Clippers went 13-2 in March, their second-best month in franchise history, and have won 16 of their last 18 to improve to more than 30 games over .500 for the first time in the teams 44-year history. And Paul has instilled this team with a nastiness that could serve it well in the post-season. With a 14-point lead and just over four minutes to play, the 6-foot Paul went up to swat a dunk attempt by Minnesotas 6-foot-11 rookie Gorgui Dieng. Paul was called for a foul, but he also sent Dieng crashing to the court. Message delivered. "Thats the attitude that we have to have that no matter what the obstacles you just keep playing," coach Doc Rivers said. "We have enough guys, and thats what we talked about today. We didnt mention the injuries. ... You just go out and play and itll work out if you believe that and play well." The Timberwolves were supposed to be in the playoff picture with the Clippers this season, but their 36-37 record to this point makes them one of the biggest disappointments in the league. Ricky Rubio had just three points on 1-for-6 shooting with five turnovers, Love was 8 for 21 and Kevin Martin was a non-factor with 12 points on 4-for-14 shooting. "Its definitely tough right now," Love said. "Weve got to try to finish this thing strong and just try to play well. ... Were a little beat up right now, but we still have to come and play and try to give it our best. But thats a very good team right there." NOTES: The Clippers hosted Iowa coach Fran McCaffery and his 14-year-old son, Patrick, who had a malignant tumour removed from his thyroid last month. Paul has been a vocal supporter of Patricks ever since first hearing about the boys situation. Patrick is a big fan of Paul, and the All-Star guard called him the day before he had surgery. ... Glen Davis had two points in four minutes after getting sent to the locker room against Houston for what Clippers coach Doc Rivers called an attitude problem. ... Love set the franchise record for made free throws in the first quarter, surpassing the 465 made by Tom Gugliotta in 1996-97. wholesale nfl jerseys . The assistants greeted Aldridge with compliments and high fives. Stotts had only one word for his high-scoring forward: "Thanks." Aldridge had 25 points and 16 rebounds in his return after missing seven games with a lower back contusion, and the Trail Blazers beat the Atlanta Hawks 100-85 on Thursday night to end a three-game losing streak.cheap nfl jerseys . -- One game. After a season featuring more losses than wins, thats all that separates the New York Knicks and the final post-season spot in the weak Eastern Conference standings.NEWARK, N.J. -- Phoenix captain Shane Doan started laughing when asked if the Coyotes suddenly had a goalie controversy. "Goalie controversies are always good because that means they are both playing well," Doan said after the Coyotes defeated the New Jersey Devils 3-2 in a shootout Thursday night to improve their playoff chances in the Western Conference. The Coyotes, who currently hold the second wild-card spot, got five of six possible points on their three-game road trip and opened a five-point lead over idle Dallas. What made this trip so special was that No. 1 goalie Mike Smith went down with a lower-body injury late in the third period of the opener against the Rangers, but replacement Thomas Greiss posted wins over Pittsburgh and New Jersey. Phoenixs only loss on the road trip was in overtime to the Rangers. "We have a ton of confidence in Greisser," Doan said. "Everybody in here has been shooting on him all year and when he has gone in, he has been amazing. I dont know what his save percentage is, but its .925 or .930. He has been amazing for us." Greiss made 26 saves and stopped shootout attempts by Damien Brunner, Ryane Clowe and Patrik Elias in matching his career high with his ninth win (9-5-2) of the season. The trip did not start out well for Greiss. He gave up the tying goal late and the winner in overtime to the Rangers. But that didnt bother the 28-year-old German, who was backed up by Smith on Thursday. "Thats the goalies job, to have a short memory," Greiss said. "You just have to forget that stuff and move on." Mikkel Boedker scored on Phoenixs first shootout try against Martin Brodeur with a top-shelf backhander. "I went with a move I was comfortable with and its always good when the goaltender bites on your fake," Boedker said. Kyle Chipchura and Chris Summers scored for the Coyotes, who blew a 2-0 lead. Clowe and Adam Henrique scored for the Devils, who fell to 0-9 in shootouts this season and extended their NHL-record streak to 13 straight losses dating to last season. While the Devils picked up a point, they are currently out of the playoff picture with nine gaames to go. cheap jerseys from china. "Its a big part of the reason the playoffs are getting tougher and tougher to reach," said Brodeur, who finished with 25 saves. "So many points weve left on the table through the year. I figured we were due. Its been a while, we havent been in one. I was feeling good about it mentally. I thought we were going to pull through this one and boost our confidence a little bit knowing were able to do it, and again it was the same old thing." New Jersey appeared to be in trouble when Summers scored with 3:03 left in the second period to give the Coyotes a 2-0 lead. The Devils got back in the game with a little luck after Phoenix was called for a delay penalty in the final minute of the period. Brodeur scrambled to the bench and Clowe scored with less than a second left as he lay in the crease. The big left wing was cross-checked by Jeff Halpern, and defenceman Jon Merrills pass through the crease caromed off his chest and slid past Greiss, who had stopped the Devils first 16 shots with their sticks. Henrique tied the game midway through the third period, taking a pass from Elias and beating defenceman Michael Stone with a move behind the net for his team-leading 24th goal. Chipchura, who had a goal and an assist against the Rangers on Monday night in Madison Square Garden, scored his fourth of the season 2:21 into the first period. Lauri Korpikoski sent a pass from behind the net to Chipchura, who put a shot under Brodeurs pad. Summers, called up from the minors this month, made it 2-0 with a slap shot that beat a screened Brodeur. NOTES: Brodeur picked up his third assist of the season and the 45th of his career on Henriques goal. ... Korpikoski missed the previous two games with an upper-body injury. ... Devils captain Bryce Salvador was out with a lower-body injury. ... The Coyotes beat the Devils 3-2 in Phoenix in January. ... Coyotes D Connor Murphy, recalled from Portland (AHL) on Wednesday, was in the lineup. ... Merrill has a goal and two assists in his last two games. The rookie had a goal and six assists in his first 44 this season. ... Coyotes RW David Moss left in the second period with a lower-body injury. wholesale jerseys cheap jerseys ' ' '