Gordon carries Clippers to OT win over Knicks

LOS ANGELES -- The Clippers kept getting closer and closer. Then they benefited from an extra 5 minutes and rookie Eric Gordon put them over the top.

Gordon scored 30 points and Los Angeles rallied from 10 points down in the fourth quarter to force overtime before beating the New York Knicks 128-124 Wednesday night.

"We definitely needed to find some momentum before the All-Star break," said Gordon, who is headed to Phoenix for the festivities. "We got our guys back together and we're starting to get the chemistry back."

Steve Novak added a career-high 23 points, Zach Randolph had 22 points and 15 rebounds, Al Thornton had 20 points and Baron Davis 13 points and a career-high 20 assists for the Clippers, who had lost eight of their previous 10.

Nate Robinson had 33 points, 15 assists and nine rebounds, and Wilson Chandler added 27 points for the Knicks, who lost their sixth in a row overall and their 10th consecutive against the Clippers in Los Angeles.

David Lee had 17 points and 16 rebounds, extending his streak of consecutive double-double games to 16 and tying him with Bob McAdoo for third longest in Knicks history.

Al Harrington added 19 points and 11 rebounds and Jared Jeffries 16 points for the Knicks, who outscored the Clippers 60-44 in the paint.

Harrington's dunk off Lee's missed 3-pointer gave the Knicks a 110-107 lead with 25 seconds left in regulation. But he received a technical that sent Novak to the line. He made both and Randolph hit a baby hook for a 110-110 tie at the end of regulation.

"I was frustrated. When I dunked it, I got hit in the face and I just lost it," he said. "I slapped the glass and got a technical.

"We have a three-point lead and they have to hit a three instead of two, but they were able to score and take it into overtime."

The Clippers outscored New York 18-14 in overtime. The Knicks got within one on a pair of free throws by Jeffries with 50 seconds left, but the Clippers controlled things from there to drop the Knicks' road record against Western Conference teams to 3-9.

"We just have to take the good with the bad and keep pushing," Robinson said. "We're getting better but we lose now. It's making us smarter and letting us learn from our mistakes and giving us more material to go back to the drawing board and figure out what we need to do to become a team that can put games together and get to the playoffs."

Gordon hit a driving reverse layup, got fouled and made the free throw to keep the Clippers ahead 122-119 with 38 seconds left. Davis hit a 3-pointer and then Fred Jones made two free throws.

Robinson was relentless, hitting a jumper and then a 3-pointer that drew the Knicks within two with 5 seconds to go before Jones went to the foul line to seal the win.

"We haven't been finishing games well," Novak said. "We had momentum going into overtime."

The Knicks opened the fourth quarter with a 10-3 run, including four by Jeffries, to go up 96-88.

Novak's 3-pointer and a driving slam dunk by Gordon got Los Angeles within one with 5:18 remaining. Jones was fouled on a driving layup by Lee and he made the free throw for the first of three ties.

After Davis got called for goaltending on Harrington, the Clippers tied the game again at 102 on Jones' 20-foot jumper. Los Angeles fell behind by as many as four before scoring the final three points of regulation on a free throw by Novak and Randolph's baby hook to tie the game at 110.

Robinson missed a jumper, forcing overtime.

"It's a big load for him to carry," Lee said. "Even though I know he seems to never get tired, I know it had to have been an exhausting night, especially for a back-to-back [games] for him."

Just like at halftime, the Clippers went into the fourth quarter trailing by one after leading by that many early in the third. The Knicks never led by more than seven in the period and Los Angeles cut its deficit to one three times in the final 1:37, helped by Novak's 3-pointer and jumpers by Gordon and Thornton.

The Clippers never led in the first half, but they tied the game once in the second quarter, when they also got within one four times, including trailing 59-58 at the break on a free throw by Davis. That happened after the Knicks led by 10 early in the period.

Game notes
Knicks G Chris Duhon missed the game because of a sprained left ankle. He's due to have an MRI Thursday in New York. Duhon said he hurt himself in Sunday's 109-108 loss at Portland, when he had 10 points and 10 assists, but he played on it in Tuesday's loss at Golden State. ... Clippers C Chris Kaman is scheduled to be back on the floor next week. He's been out since late November with a strained left arch. "We should get him back for 25-plus games," coach Mike Dunleavy said. ... Dunleavy agreed to wear a mic during the game for the local TV broadcast. "They got to watch my language," he said, laughing.