Nets Cut Down Clippers

If Stephon Marbury's statistics aren't enough to get him an All-Star spot, maybe his clutch performances and highlight-reel plays will do the trick.

Marbury had 21 points and 10 assists and hit two big jumpers in the final minute to hold off a Clippers rally in leading the New Jersey Nets to a 110-105 win over Los Angeles on Thursday night.

"If that wasn't an All-Star performance by Stephon Marbury, I don't know what is," Nets coach Don Casey said after New Jersey won its third straight and sent the Clippers to their sixth straight road loss.

"The most important thing we took out of this game is we found a way to win," Marbury said. "We stepped it up when we had to, and that's what we have to do."

Kittles had nine of his 22 points in a 14-5 run to start the third quarter, Keith Van Horn added 19, Kendall Gill had 18 and backup center Jamie Feick added 14 rebounds. New Jersey held a 48-29 edge on the boards against the taller Clippers.

Rookie Lamar Odom, who has averaged 26.7 points over the last three games, had 26 to lead the Clippers, who have lost three straight overall and seven of eight. Derek Anderson added 23, Maurice Taylor had 18 and Michael Olowokandi had 16 points and 10 rebounds.

The Nets never trailed after taking the lead late in the first quarter but they never could put the Clippers away despite leading by as many as 15 in the second half.

The lead was 100-90 after Gill hit two free throws with 3:53 to go, but the Clippers responded with an 11-4 run and drew within 104-101 on a layup by Anderson with 1:17 to play.

Marbury hit a 15-foot jumper with 59 seconds to play to restore a five-point lead, but Anderson hit a baseline jumper with 42.3 seconds to play to cut the margin to 106-103.

"We were in it the whole time, even at the clutch times," said Odom, who shot 11-of-13 from the field. "We just didn't pull it off. The rebounds hurt, but the turnovers were crucial because they turn into points and scoring opportunites."

After Marbury was blocked on a shot in the lane by Olowokandi, the Nets had only four seconds left on the shot clock. However, Marbury took the inbounds pass and hit a jumper from the edge of the 3-point line to ice the game with 18.2 seconds to go.

"This could have been another Vancouver game, where we underestimated a team and ended up losing," said Gill, referring to a recent home-court loss to the Grizzlies. "But we are learning how to put teams away and not let teams go past us. Tonight `Stef' made those big shots and that was the difference."

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