By George Devine, Sr.

With the series returning to Staples Center, and the angst over team ownership winding down, the Clippers had an opportunity to take the lead in the second round. They just were overpowered by the Oklahoma City Thunder, 118-112.

It was a tightly played contest in which Los Angeles led in the first and third quarters, and the lead went back and forth throughout the evening. But Oklahoma City pulled ahead in the fourth, and the rest was history.

For OKC, MVP Kevin Durant played almost the entire game (45:48) and led the scoring with 36 points. He contributed 8 rebounds — all defensive — and 6 assists, enough to make the difference. Russell Westbrook had 25 points, 13 assists and 8 boards. Serge Ibaka had 20 points and 6 rebounds. Reggie Jackson, who was poorly defended, was able to score 14 points, as was Caron Butler. The team as a whole shot 85.7 from the free throw line, well over the typical NBA pcrcentage.

For the Clippers, Blake Griffin was on the court for 42:16, pouring in 34 points; he also was responsible for 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 blocks. Chris Paul was in for almost as long (42:01) and scored 21 points. More importantly, he contributed a spectacular number of assists with 16. Jamal Crawford had 20 points, Matt Barnes 14 and DeAndre Jordan 10, with 11 boards.

The next game is at 12:30 p.m. PDT on Sunday, May 11.