With the playoffs approaching, there is no team in basketball hotter than the Los Angeles Clippers.

The L.A. squad, which is locked into the fourth seed, notched their sixth straight victory on Tuesday night when they pounded another playoff-bound team, the Memphis Grizzlies 110-84 at home inside the Staples Center. Paul Pierce pitched in 11 points to a balance Clippers attack that saw six different players reach double digits in the scoring column.

Memphis Grizzlies v Los Angeles Clippers

Austin Rivers topped the scoring column with 14 points, while Jeff Green added another 13 off the bench. Starters Chris Paul and Blake Griffin each had 12, and JJ Redick finished with 11 before leaving with a bruised heel in the first half.

“You can see how focused we have been,” coach Doc Rivers said. “We are starting to take away individual strengths. Our talk is better. I love the way we’re playing defense right now.”

Smothering defense coupled with uptempo offense allowed the Clippers to get out for 22 points in transition. DeAndre Jordan guided the defensive effort and pulled down a game-high 12 boards to go along with two blocks. That defense also helped Los Angeles to stifle Memphis all night. Zach Randolph was the only Grizzlies starter to score in double figures with 14 points. After the game, Clippers players raved about the cohesion the team has been playing with as they prepare for the postseason peaking at what seems to be the right time.

“Our chemistry is great,” Green said. “It’s getting better and better with each game. We need to keep progressing. The playoffs are right around the corner, and we need to be focused and ready.”

In the early going, the Los Angeles defense led to easy offense as the Clippers jumped out to a lead. Redick pulled up for back-to-back triples in transition to build early momentum and put the Clippers up 10-5. With his third three later in the night, Redick also tied his own franchise record with 200 treys on the season. Jarell Martin carried the Grizzlies early, with eight points in the first quarter, but Chris Paul tallied nine to keep L.A. out front.

Late in the frame with the Clippers up 10, No. 34 got on the scoreboard with a pair of free throws that pushed the lead to 29-17, where it stood after one.

Paul stayed solid from the stripe in the second, hitting another two early in the quarter after a run had pulled the Grizzlies within six. The Clippers pushed it from there and thanks to eight points apiece from Green and Rivers, L.A. took a 61-43 lead into the break.

Paul played less than a minute in the third frame, but the Clippers kept their foot on the gas to take a commanding 20-point lead into the final frame. The Truth then totaled seven points to lead all scorers in the fourth quarter. Before he started knocking down shots, he fed Cole Aldrich for a dunk to get L.A. going again after a brief slump. Then with about three minutes remaining, Paul spun around for a midrange jumper to push the lead back over 20 points, 101-80. Later he drained a deep three to cap his scoring night and make it 108-84, as the Clips cruised to victory.

NEXT UP

The Clippers (53-28) play one more game before the playoffs begin and it will take them on the road to Phoenix, where they’ll face the struggling Suns (22-59) on Wednesday night.

The injury-riddled Phoenix squad has dropped eight of their last 10 games. Guards Eric Bledsoe (knee) and Brandon Knight (sports hernia) remain sidelined, while center Tyson Chandler is questionable with a concussion. The Clippers may look to rest many of their players as well on Wednesday, with their playoff position all sealed up.

Los Angeles will be watching several other games around the league with interest, however, as their first round playoff opponent will be determined on Wednesday night. L.A.’s win over Memphis knocked the Grizzlies, who have lost nine of their last 10, out of contention for the fifth spot, leaving the Portland Trail Blazers and Dallas Mavericks fighting for the fifth seed.

Portland sits in that spot now, and would lock it up with a win at home against Denver or a Dallas loss to the San Antonio Spurs. The only way the Mavericks can move up to fifth is if they win and the Trail Blazers fall to the Nuggets. The Dallas/San Antonio game tips at 5 p.m. PT while Portland and Denver meet at 7:30 p.m. PT. The Clippers will also be in action at that time in Phoenix, and that game, the final one of the regular season for Los Angeles, can be seen locally on Prime Ticket.

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