OKLAHOMA CITY -- Chris Paul and the Los Angeles Clippers showed what they can do when their minds are on basketball. Paul made a career-high eight 3-pointers and scored 32 points to help the Clippers beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 122-105 Monday night in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal. The Clippers acknowledged that the racial comments by owner Donald Sterling that got him permanently banned from the league were a distraction during their first-round series against Golden State. Once they put the initial shock behind them, they beat the Warriors and carried their momentum into Game 1 against the Thunder. Los Angeles shot 55 per cent from the field and made 15 of 29 3-point attempts. Paul, who had never made more than five 3-pointers in a game, also had 10 assists. "When somebodys got it going like that, you just try to stay out of the way as much as possible, but also help keep that fire going," Clippers forward Blake Griffin said. Though Paul is a career 36 per cent 3-point shooter, he doesnt usually shoot them so often. Once he started hitting them, he became increasingly aggressive. He made 8 of 9 for the night. "I came over here early and got in a lot of shots, so I think that had a lot to do with it, too," Paul said. Oklahoma City didnt anticipate Paul taking on the scoring load for Los Angeles, but he took advantage of good screens and knocked down the shots. The Thunder felt they defended him relatively well. "I thought on a lot of those 3s, especially early in the game, we had a hand in his face and a hand in his shots," Thunder guard Thabo Sefolosha said. "So we did a decent job, but those shots went in and that boosted their whole team." Griffin scored 23 points, Jamal Crawford had 17 and J.J. Redick added 12 for the Clippers. Russell Westbrook scored 29 points, Kevin Durant had 25 and Serge Ibaka added 12 for the Thunder, who suffered their worst home loss since moving to Oklahoma City. "We have to get more physical," Durant said. "Im not talking about hard fouls, Im talking about jamming the lane, fighting through screens and not letting guys run free. We just have to be more physical." Game 2 is Wednesday night in Oklahoma City. "We just understand that we dont go into Game 2 with a 17-point lead," Paul said. "You know, youve just got to come back and be hungry and not be satisfied with one." Both teams were coming off Game 7 wins in the first round on Saturday night, but only the Thunder looked weary. Oklahoma City opened by taking a 16-10 lead, but the Clippers responded with a 24-6 run. Paul hit five 3-pointers in the first quarter, matching his career high for 3s in a playoff game in the first 12 minutes. The Clippers shot 67 per cent in the first quarter to take a 39-25 lead. Los Angeles extended its lead to 24 points in the second quarter and took a 69-52 halftime lead with Paul getting 22 points and six assists. Durant and Westbrook scored 16 points each in the first half, but the Thunder committed 11 turnovers before halftime. A quick 3-pointer and a pull-up jumper by Paul pushed the Clippers lead to 78-56 in the opening minutes of the third quarter. The Clippers reached 100 points with just over a minute left in the period and led 104-78 heading into the fourth quarter. The score that matters to the Thunder is 1-0. They were behind 2-1 and 3-2 against Memphis in the first round and rallied to win the series. "You know, weve been there before," Sefolosha said. "You know, its never easy, so at the same time its the first to four wins, and were down one. So its not the end of the world, weve just got to go back and see what we can do for the next game." NOTES: Sefolosha rejoined the starting lineup after sitting out the final two games against Memphis. Thunder coach Scott Brooks said before Mondays game that he started Caron Butler in Games 6 and 7 against Memphis because the team needed another offensive weapon. ... Griffin attended the University of Oklahoma. He got a mixed reaction during pregame introductions. ... The Clippers made 7 of 10 3-point attempts in the first quarter. ... Ibaka was issued a technical foul in the third quarter after getting his legs tangled up with Griffin. ... Clippers C DeAndre Jordan made just 1 of 8 free throw attempts. ... Durant was issued a technical foul for arguing with an official with 10:40 remaining in the fourth quarter. ... The Clippers committed just nine turnovers. ... Oklahoma City outrebounded the Clippers 47-31. Dmitri Kulikov Jersey . On the day the club activated Casey Janssen from the 15-day disabled list, his return from a strained oblique that cost him the first six weeks of the regular season, it announced Sergio Santos would be placed on the disabled list on Monday with discomfort in his right forearm. Roberto Luongo Jersey . Erik Logan, president of the network, said Friday that the postponement was made after meetings with the St. Louis Rams. https://www.panthersjerseycheap.com/798f-quinton-howden-jersey-panthers.html . “Momentum is only as good as the next days starter,” the long-time Baltimore Orioles manager famously quipped. Dino Ciccarelli Jersey . -- The guys in green raced off the court and into the locker room where they danced and sang, compared whose shot was most likely to end up featured on "One Shining Moment," and checked Twitter to see who was giving them a shoutout. Brett Connolly Jersey .com) - Robert Upshaw made a putback jumper to put 17th-ranked Washington ahead with 1:27 remaining in the game and the Huskies held on to beat Eastern Washington 81-77 on Sunday. MIAMI -- Safety Louis Delmas signed a one-year contract Monday worth up to $3.5 million with the Miami Dolphins, who shook up their secondary on the eve of free agency. Miami also released cornerback Dimitri Patterson on Monday. Patterson was plagued by injuries the past two seasons, and his release frees up more than $5 million in salary cap space for the Dolphins. Delmas spent the past five seasons with the Detroit Lions, who released him last month. Hes expected to replace Chris Clemons, who can become a free agent Tuesday. Delmas started 15 games in 2013 and had a career-high three interceptions. The South Florida native was a second-round draft pick who made 64 starts for the Lions. "He is leader on and off the field and has a proveen track record of playmaking that will benefit the entire defensive unit," new Dolphins general manager Dennis Hickey said.dddddddddddd The Dolphins are expected to be active in free agency beginning Tuesday. Their priority will be to revamp an offensive line that had an awful 2013 both on and off the field, and became the focus of a bullying scandal that sabotaged the season. Guards Richie Incognito and John Jerry, both implicated in the scandal, are among those who become free agents. Neither is likely to return to Miami. Help for the defensive front seven will also be on Hickeys shopping list. Nose tackles Paul Soliai and Randy Starks can become free agents, and the Dolphins also want to upgrade their linebacker corps. ' ' '