BAR » road.That continues to be the case.Mic

LOS ANGELES -- Chris Pauls teammates figure he might need more time to fully recover from his role in one of the ugliest playoff collapses in NBA history. With the Los Angeles Clippers season riding on Game 6, Paul knows he doesnt have that luxury. The Oklahoma City Thunder are back at Staples Center on Thursday night, and the Clippers must shelve their memories of the mistakes late in Game 5 that cost them a chance to close out the series at home. Blake Griffin and Jamal Crawford went to work on Pauls mind on the bus ride to their flight home from Oklahoma City after the Clippers blew a 13-point lead in just over four minutes. The fiasco culminated in the All-Star point guards touch foul on Russell Westbrook to set up the winning free throws, sandwiched between two brutal turnovers by Paul -- all in the final 14 seconds. "He was visibly upset, and I told him that game is not on one guy," Griffin said Wednesday at the Clippers training complex. "Its not on him. We made plenty of mistakes down the stretch, plenty of mistakes throughout the game that could ultimately change the outcome. That idea that the game is on him, you understand what hes saying, but its not on him by any means. We still have two games left to play." The Clippers roller coaster of a post-season has careened into another valley after the Thunder stormed back from near-certain defeat with the help of Pauls mistakes and a much-debated out-of-bounds call with 11.3 seconds left. Clippers coach Doc Rivers hadnt changed his opinion one day after declaring the Clippers "were robbed" on that call, although he said he wont file any formal protest. The NBA issued a statement Wednesday night saying the call was made correctly in the absence of clear evidence to change it on replay review. Paul still appeared glum, giving short, clipped answers to questions about his turnovers and the Clippers ability to bounce back in Game 6. "I woke up this morning with a beautiful wife and two beautiful kids," Paul said. "At the end of the day, it is basketball, but theres a lot of guys livelihoods who depend on it, so Ive got to do my part." After three weeks of a circus atmosphere around the Clippers, Rivers still believes his young team has gathered enough resilience to force the series back to Oklahoma City for a deciding game. The Clippers played 43 outstanding minutes in Game 5 to reach the brink of what could have been a benchmark victory in a shift of the Western Conference hierarchy, only to let it slip away. Rivers thinks its a lesson the Clippers needed. "You dont win it easy," Rivers said. "Were trying to do something special here and be something special. And if youre trying to stand out in any job, its going to be hard. Youre going to face adversity, and youve just got to accept that thats part of the process. Yeah, this is hard. Its supposed to be. And thats the only thing I told our guys. Whats going on right now is exactly what should happen to win. You have to go through stuff to win, and youve just got to deal with it." The Thunder travelled to the West Coast on Wednesday with a bit of house money after the comeback by Westbrook and Kevin Durant, who combined for 17 of Oklahoma Citys 19 points in the final 9 1/2 minutes while Los Angeles fumbled, stumbled and finally crashed. Oklahoma City could advance to its third Western Conference final in four years with a victory in Game 6. But the Thunder also recall their own collapse in Game 4 at Staples Center, where they blew a 16-point lead with nine minutes left last weekend. Game 5 told coach Scott Brooks plenty about his teams tenacity. "I like the fact that we did that after the game before," Brooks said. "We had a lot of opportunities to win that game." Neither team has been significantly better in this series: Los Angeles has cumulatively outscored the Thunder 540-539 through five games, with Oklahoma Citys two-man offensive game countering the Clippers more balanced attack. But even after the exhaustion of a seven-game first-round series with Golden State and the continuing drama surrounding owner Donald Sterlings lifetime ban, the Clippers leaders think theyve still got more fight. "I think weve done a pretty good job this season and in the post-season of putting things in the past and just moving forward," said Griffin, who leads the Clippers with 24.2 points per game in the series. Larry Robinson Jersey .com) - Ben Lovejoy tallied a goal and an assist as the Anaheim Ducks cruised into the All-Star break with a 6-3 victory against the Calgary Flames. Alexei Kovalev Jersey .ca presents its latest weekly power rankings for the 2013-14 Barclays Premier League season. http://www.authenticcanadienspro.com/Jef...nadiens-jersey/. -- Mike Shanahan gave Robert Griffin III a rest, and may have turned up the pressure on himself, too. Custom Montreal Canadiens Jerseys . Next week, hell try to add to the list. A Stanley Cup champion as a rookie, Seguin followed that up by becoming the youngest player to lead the Boston Bruins in scoring. Maurice Richard Jersey . - Aroldis Chapman, with two black eyes, has returned to the Cincinnati Reds clubhouse four days after being hit in the face by a line drive.ORLANDO, Fla. - The limited success the Philadelphia 76ers have experienced this season has all been on the road.That continues to be the case.Michael Carter-Williams scored 21 points as the Sixers opened a seven-game road trip with a 96-88 victory over the Orlando Magic on Sunday night.The win ended a five-game losing streak. All three of their victories this season have come away from home.Its always great to win, but when you dont win that much, its even better, Carter-Williams said. Im not sure what it is. When were struggling on the road, its a little easier for us to come back together because everyone is against us. All we have is each other.Philadelphia trailed by 11 in the third quarter, but led by as many as 14 points in the fourth.The Sixers also got a lift from their bench, which outscored the Magic reserves 37-20.Victor Oladipo had 23 points for the Magic. Nik Vucevic finished with 19 points and 17 rebounds, and Tobias Harris added 17 points.The Magic have lost four straight and six of their last seven.Orlando looked to be in control as it inched out to its double-digit lead. But the Sixers closed the third quarter on a 22-7 spurt, and took a four-point lead into the final period.Philadelphia kept that momentum going, scoring seven straight to open the fourth.Orlando tried to stage its own late rally, but was thwarted by late turnovers.Magic coach Jacque Vaughn tinkered with his starting lineup Sunday, inserting rookie Elfrid Payton at point guard and Kyle OQuinn at power forward.The move meant Oladipo shifted over to shooting guard, marking the first time he and Payton had started together in Orlandos backcourt this season. It also meant that off-season acquisitions Channing Frye and Evan Fournier — whho entered the night averaging 14 points per game — were sent to the bench to anchor the second unit.ddddddddddddResults were mixed, but there was briefly a tangible effect on the defensive end for Orlando.OQuinn was the most active early, blocking three shots in the first half and being generally disruptive to the Sixers in the halfcourt with a handful of deflections.Vucevic said its all a work in progress.I think defensively, its not really about a lineup, Vucevic said. Its about us talking, being vocal, and following the game plan we have.Philadelphia was held to just 5 of 19 from the field in second quarter and shot only 42 per cent for the night.It turned out to be enough, with all nine of the Sixers available players scoring at least five points.There was a brief verbal spat at one point during a timeout between Carter-Williams and Nerlens Noel, but coach Brett Brown said he liked how they were able to work it out among themselves.Its teammates talking to teammates. Its real, Brown said. It proved to be a real healthy conversation so I let it go ... Its not like they just met each other and have issues. Its healthy issues, its real, thats what families go through. It aint always pretty. They talked it through and off we go.___TIP-INSMagic: The starting lineup Sunday was Orlandos eighth different one of the season. ... Vucevic recorded his 16th double-double of the season.76ers: G JaKarr Sampson started in place of Hollis Thompson, who was out with an illness. Reserve F Furken Aldemir sat out for the second straight game with plantar fasciitis in his right foot.UP NEXTMagic: Host Boston on Tuesday76ers: At Miami on Tuesday.___Follow Kyle Hightower on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/khightower Cheap Buffalo Sabres Gear Wholesale Calgary Flames Jerseys Cheap Adidas Colorado Avalanche Jerseys Montreal Canadiens Outlet Store Wholesale New Jersey Devils Jerseys Adidas Arizona Coyotes Jerseys Cheap Adidas Boston Bruins Jerseys Cheap Adidas Carolina Hurricanes Jerseys Chicago Blackhawks Shop Free Shipping Wholesale Columbus Blue Jackets Jerseys Dallas Stars Shop Free Shipping Cheap Adidas Detroit Red Wings Jerseys Anaheim Ducks Jerseys China Wholesale Edmonton Oilers Jerseys Florida Panthers Shop Free Shipping Wholesale Los Angeles Kings Jerseys Minnesota Wild Outlet Store Cheap Adidas Nashville Predators Jerseys Cheap Adidas New York Islanders Jerseys New York Rangers Winter Classic Jerseys Cheap Adidas Ottawa Senators Jerseys Cheap Adidas Philadelphia Flyers Jerseys Wholesale Pittsburgh Penguins Jerseys Cheap Adidas San Jose Sharks Jerseys St. Louis Blues Winter Classic Jerseys Wholesale Tampa Bay Lightning Jerseys Toronto Maple Leafs Outlet Store Vancouver Canucks Outlet Store Cheap Adidas Vegas Golden Knights Jerseys Cheap Adidas Washington Capitals Jerseys Cheap Adidas Winnipeg Jets Jerseys ' ' '