Mobley leads Clippers past Grizzlies

"I wanted to come out aggressive," said Mobley. "We needed a ’W.’"

Elton Brand scored 20 points and pulled down nine rebounds for the Clippers, who improved to 7-1 at home.

"We had some good ball movement tonight," said LA head coach Mike Dunleavy. "(The Grizzlies) put some runs together, but we made some stops. Our effort was good tonight."

Tim Thomas and Corey Maggette each scored 12 points off the bench for LA, which began a four-game homestand.

Hakim Warrick scored a team-high 22 points to go along with five boards and four assists for the Grizzlies, who were looking to win back-to-back games for the first time this season.

Rookie Rudy Gay scored 15 points while Chucky Atkins and Dahntay Jones each had 14 for Memphis, which had won three straight and four of their last five contests against the Clippers.

A Gay jumper brought the Grizzlies within 21-20 with 2:29 left in the opening period before the Clippers exploded for a 20-0 run over the course of the first and second quarters to seize control of the game.

Thomas’ trey ignited the spurt, which featured eight points from Maggette and seven by Mobley.

Mobley’s three-pointer capped the run, giving LA a 41-20 lead early in the second quarter as the Clippers took a 64-49 lead into the break.

LA led by as much as 22 points in the third quarter, but with its lead back down to 15 the Grizzlies showed some life by closing the quarter with 10-3 run to cut their deficit to 81-73 heading into the final period.

However, Memphis didn’t get closer than eight as the Clippers held the Grizzlies at arm’s length the rest of the way.