WASHINGTON -- Chris Paul called it a "must-win. Leo... McKelvin Jersey ." Blake Griffin deemed it a "Game 7," which, technically, it was. Like many weary teams before them, the Los Angeles Clippers could have mentally checked out when faced with the final game of a long road trip. Instead, they shared the ball impeccably and wrapped up a tougher-than-it-shouldve-been East Coast swing Saturday night with a 113-97 win over the Washington Wizards. "We wanted to try to turn this from an OK trip into a good trip," Paul said. "There was a lot of factors. Its a long flight back home, and weve got a lot of sore losers on this team." Los Angeles never trailed and had assists on 27 of 39 field goals, including 16 of 21 in the first half. Paul finished with 38 points and 12 assists, and the Clippers shot 56 per cent to conclude a 4-3 journey that included games against six Eastern Conference teams, leaving them 6-6 on the season against the pedestrian East and 10-3 against the mighty West. "This was important to close out," Griffin said. "We kind of looked at it as like a Game 7 for us, being on the road. Game 7, got to win. I thought we responded well." Griffin had 16 points and nine rebounds and was particularly vocal, keeping his teammates focused on the game at hand. The Clippers, on the road since Dec. 2, had already logged more than 6,000 miles on the trip. "Blake Griffin, every timeout, kept saying, No letup. Were the tired team, lets not think about it. Lets keep playing," coach Doc Rivers said. Paul was also at the forefront of the dont-let-up agenda. Sure, he was exaggerating when he called this a must-win in the wake of Thursdays loss at Brooklyn, but sometimes thats what it takes. "Were going to make him say that every night," Rivers joked. Paul went 11 for 14 from the field and made all 11 of his free throws. Jamal Crawford played the fifth man instead of the sixth man, making his first start since April 9, 2012, and finished with 17 points. Jared Dudley, who apologized to fans on Twitter after a 1-for-7 shooting performance against Brooklyn, found his game and carried the Clippers early, going 4 for 5 in the first quarter and finishing with 16 points. "Hes a great shooter," Rivers said. "Its not going away forever. It just went away for a little while, and we wanted it to come back as soon as possible." John Wall had 24 points and 12 assists for the Wizards, who have lost four straight since reaching .500 for the first time since 2009. The outcome appeared predetermined when coach Randy Wittman announced before the game that Nene would sit out again because of a foot injury. The Wizards have lost seven in a row when Nene doesnt play and are 3-24 without the Brazilian forward since the beginning of last season. But even Nene probably wouldnt have made much of a difference against the efficient Clippers. "You could see theres a difference between the teams, the way they talk to each other, the way they communicate, just basically the rule of winning," Washington centre Marcin Gortat said. Gortat, who went 3 for 10 from the field, also stirred the pot by saying the Wizards arent using him the right way. "I dont like the position I play," Gortat said. "Im constantly drifting more and more away from the basket and quite honestly, thats not my game. ... I just think Ive got to talk to Coach and just clear things up." The Clippers were always in control, but a 6-0 run consisting of nothing but dunks -- one by Griffin, two by DeAndre Jordan -- pushed the lead to 19 in the third quarter and pretty much settled the matter. The Wizards trailed by double digits for the entire second half. "They got everything they wanted," Washington swingman Trevor Ariza said. "We didnt get any stops." 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The 57-year-old Tietjens has coached New Zealand to nine IRB World Sevens titles and to four Commonwealth Games gold medals as its only coach in the professional era. New Zealand Rugby Union chief executive Steve Tew said the re-signing was made with a focus on 2016 when sevens will be in the Olympics. DETROIT -- Rain is following the Kansas City Royals. Their scheduled game against the Detroit Tigers was postponed because of bad weather Monday night, Kansas Citys second rainout in three days. This one will be made up at 7:05 p.m. on Sept. 24, which had been a mutual off day for both teams before playing each other the following day at Comerica Park. "You dont want to wait until September, but thats a better option than sitting here for hours trying to wait out this rain," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "You dont want to sit here all night and still not be able to play." Luke Hochevar had been slated to pitch for the Royals against Tigers left-hander Duane Below. Hochevar was pushed back a day, but Detroit will skip Below and start Rick Porcello as scheduled on Tuesday night. Play never started and the game was called after a delay of about 40 minutes. "If you looked at the forecast and the radar, you pretty much knew there wasnt going to be a chance of getting this one in," Yost said. "There was just way too much rain." The Royals had won three in a row before Saturdays game in Minnesota was postponed, but Yost doesnt think the lack of action has hurt his teams momentum. Kansas City lost to the Twins 7-4 on Sunday. "These guys are in here ready and raring to go," he said. "Obviously, they want to play baseball, but when you get to this level, you are used to things like this happening." The rainout could help both teams on the mound. The Royals will pitch Hochevar and Jonathan Sanchez in Detroit, then have Danny Duffy and Bruce Chen ready to start the first two games of a home series against the New York Yankees this week. That would allow Kansas City to skip struggling Luis Mendoza. "It will help us a little," Yost said. "We go Hoch, Sanchez and Duffy, and then we can still use Bruce on his regular day if we want to do that. jerseys from china. " The Tigers, already facing a shortage in the bullpen, were going to start Below against the Royals. The rainout not only gives Detroits overworked relievers an extra day off, it lets manager Jim Leyland return Below to his preferred role of long relief. Doug Fister (strained ribcage) is scheduled for a rehab start Wednesday with Triple-A Toledo, and the Tigers hope hell be ready to pitch the next time his spot in the rotation comes up. "If everything goes well on Wednesday, and I obviously dont know if it will, Fister would start next Monday in Seattle," Leyland said. "Thats what we are hoping will happen." The Tigers clubhouse was a fairly gloomy place for much of Monday afternoon, with the team having lost eight of 10 and Delmon Young waiting for news on his punishment for Fridays trouble in New York. The outfielder was suspended by Major League Baseball for seven days without pay following his arrest on a hate crime harassment charge last week. The commissioners office said the suspension is retroactive to Friday, when Young was arrested after a late-night tussle at his hotel during which police say he yelled anti-Semitic epithets. But things immediately brightened up when injured designated hitter Victor Martinez limped into the Detroit clubhouse. Martinez, expected to miss most of the season after injuring his knee during off-season workouts, hadnt been to Comerica Park yet this year. "It is really great to be back here," he said. "I cant tell you how much I miss this." Martinezs arrival seemed to energize his smiling teammates. "It feels good to be able to walk back in here and be with these guys. No one else understands how special this is," Martinez said. "Now that I got rid of my crutches -- well, I still have them, but Im going to make a fire with them -- Ill be here more often." ' ' '