After the Clippers lost to the Bulls in their last overtime game, almost half of their roster was "missing" today.
Paul George (elbow maintenance), Marcus Morris (sore left knee), Reggie Jackson (resting), and Nicholas Batum (sore left ankle) did not travel to Milwaukee.
Meanwhile, bucks "Alphabet Brother" (sore right knee), "Holiday Brother" (left ankle sprain), Middleton (left wrist soreness) and Brooke Lopez (ready to return to the field) also did not play.
It was in such a starless game that the Clippers' Robert Covington became the star of the stars. The Clippers traded Covington and Powell shortly before the trade deadline for Bledsoe and others. Covington is known for his defense, but today he set a Clippers all-time record with three-pointers.
He hit a record 11 three-pointers today and scored a career-high 43 points to help the Clippers beat the Bucks 153:119 at The Fiserv Arena. Broke the team's highest single-game score in 24 years!
Covington is the third player this season to score 40+ and 10+ three-pointers in a single game. Plus, according to team stats, he's the only Clippers player to have at least 43 points, 11 three-pointers, eight rebounds and three blocks in a game.
When Covington hit his 10th three-pointer, his teammate told him in the ensuing timeout that he had set a team record that had once been held by JJ Redick and Caron Butler. Before this game, Covington had never scored more than 31 points in his career, let alone hit more than seven three-pointers.
Taking advantage of the heat of his hand, he shot his 11th three-pointer, and even alphabet brother, who was sitting on the sideline watching the game, marveled at his opponent's career night, telling Covington to fight for Klay Thompson's 14 league records.
He listened to the advice of brother Alphabet and continued to fire, but he did not succeed. A layup with a one-minute left in the game broke the team's single-game high of 152 points against Toronto in 1998.
In addition to Covington, his teammate Amir Coffey also had a great night, scoring a career-high 32 points, 7 assists, 6 rebounds and 4 steals. Six of the Clippers, who have just eight-man rotations, scored in double figures, and they scored 73 points in the first half to tie for the second-highest halftime scoring of the season. Then they scored 80 points in the second half, shooting 23-of-43 from 43-point range overall and shooting a terrifying 60.9 percent.
At this time, only Qualu can direct YYDS
The win improved the Clippers' record to 38-40. It was their 64th consecutive regular-season victory when they reached 100 minutes in the third quarter, a record that dates back to 1989.
Covington's performance today will make his future an important discussion area of the team's offseason, and the Clippers are working hard to win the championship. He'll be a free agent next year, but the Clippers have his bird rights, which could help the team prioritize re-signing the favorite forward.
Just ask such a top 3D, the Lakers next door are eager or not?
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