Kaman leads Clippers past Grizzlies

LOS ANGELES — Chris Kaman had 26 points and nine rebounds, and the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Memphis Grizzlies 113-110 on Saturday night for their third straight victory — equaling their longest winning streak of last season.

The Grizzlies were without 10-time All-Star point guard Allen Iverson, whose current status as a backup behind Mike Conley — and Iverson's subsequent comments on the matter — have cast a cloud over coach Lionel Hollins' 1-6 club.

The four-time NBA scoring champ, who has played in only three games for his new team after injuring a hamstring, received permission from team owner Michael Heisley to return home to Atlanta and attend to personal business.

Rudy Gay led the Memphis with 33 points.

Marcus Williams jumped up a notch on the depth chart, getting seven points and six assists in 17 minutes. Conley played 31 minutes, finishing with 16 points and six assists. Marc Gasol chipped in with 13 rebounds and 10 points.

Zach Randolph, who averaged 20.5 points and 10.5 rebounds for the Clippers in 39 games last season after he was acquired from the New York Knicks, had 19 points and 12 rebounds for Memphis in his return to Staples Center. Randolph was traded to the Grizzlies in July for Quentin Richardson — who was subsequently dealt to Minnesota and then to Miami.

Craig Smith had 18 points for the Clippers, whose 19 wins last season included consecutive victories over Portland, Houston and Oklahoma City — the first one coming in double overtime on the road. They then continued to lose 15 of their next 17.

Tied at 82 after three quarters, the Grizzlies got a three-point play from Williams to take a 93-88 lead with 9:06 left. Baron Davis picked up his fifth foul on the play, but the Clippers tied the score 99-all with 5:33 remaining after Chris Smith made a pair of layups 19 seconds apart — the second one after Randolph missed a 20-footer at the other end.

The Clippers made only one field goal after that — a 3-pointer by Rasual Butler with 3:13 left — but maintained their lead by making 11 of 16 free throws. Gay had a chance to tie it, but missed a 23-footer at the horn.

Gay, who averaged 28.6 points in his three games against the Clippers last season, led them to a 60-55 halftime lead with 21 points after getting 22 in 44 minutes against the Lakers.

After falling behind by 11 points, the Clippers didn't take their first lead until Smith hit a 3-pointer that put them ahead 39-38 with 7:56 left in the second quarter and capped a 14-2 run.

NOTES: During a play stoppage with 3 1-2 minutes left in the first quarter, a fan sitting within earshot of the Grizzlies bench yelled: "Hey, Lionel, we paid to see A.I." ... The Clippers' 19 wins last season included consecutive victories against the Portland, Houston and Oklahoma City — the first one coming in double overtime on the road. They then proceeded to lose 15 of their next 17. ... Clippers small forward Al Thornton, who scored a career-high 39 points against the Grizzlies on March 28, 2008, came off the bench for the third straight game after starting the first four as a starter in the first four games of the season. He finished with six points in 17 minutes, after playing four scoreless minutes in Friday night's 118-90 win at Golden State. Thornton started 67 of 71 games last season. ... Gay had 14 points in the first quarter, one more than the other Memphis starters combined.

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Nov 08, 2009 - 02:27 a.m. EDT

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