LOS ANGELES — Coach Tyronn Lue said he knows he has been asking a lot of Clippers center Ivica Zubac, who has been averaging nearly 31 minutes a game, a heavy workload for the No. 5 position.
Yet if Zubac is fatigued or needs a break, he isn’t showing any signs. He staged one of the most dominate displays by a center this season Sunday against the Indiana Pacers, providing a needed shot of energy in an unsettling season.
With injured stars Paul George, Kawhi Leonard and Luke Kennard watching from the bench, Zubac scored 31 points, posted a career-high 29 rebounds, blocked three shots and had three assists before fouling out in the Clippers’ 114-100 victory at Crypto.com Arena.
Zubac’s 29 boards are the most rebounds in an NBA game this season and three shy of the Clippers’ franchise record of 32 by Swen Nater in 1979. The Croatian center is just the third player in NBA history to have reach those totals in a single game since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on Feb. 3, 1978. His teammates doused him with water after the game.
“That felt good,” Zubac said after logging 36 minutes.
Zubac went to work early, scoring 14 points in the first quarter. By halftime, he had joined an impressive list of centers who have posted 15 rebounds, 15 points and three blocks in a half. The others are Shaquille O’Neal, Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan and Yao Ming.
Although at times it seemed to be a one-man show Sunday, four others scored in double figures for the Clippers. Norman Powell had 19 points, Terance Mann added 14, Marcus Morris Sr. 13 and John Wall 10. Wall also had eight assists.
“I think we’ve been doing better offensively, understanding what we are trying to do, how we are going to attack,” Lue said.
The defense also showed signs of improvement against the Pacers, who came into town having won three of their past four games. The Clippers held Indiana to 12 points in the third quarter as they ended a two-game skid.
Reggie Jackson buried a 3-pointer (his first points of the game) 41 seconds into the fourth quarter to give the Clippers an 18-point cushion at 87-69. With the Pacers’ Buddy Hield and Jalen Smith on the bench, the Clippers easily maintained their lead, pushing it to 20 points.
The Clippers, who have struggled lately from the line, made 11 of 14 free throws in the first half to take a 59-57 lead into the locker room. Mann made all four of his shots, Powell was 3 of 4 and overall and the team shot 78.6%.
But the focus was on Smith and Zubac, who squared off in the first half, each scoring in double figures. Smith repeatedly moved into the for most of his 19 points, visibly frustrating Zubac. When Smith airballed a mid-range jumper, Zubac raised his arms as if to say “finally.”
Zubac stayed even with Smith with 16 points on 8 of 11 shooting. The difference was in rebounds. The center pulled down 15 rebounds — the first Clippers player to have at least 15 points and 15 rebounds in a half since DeAndre Jordan achieved the feat March 21, 2018.
Myles Turner picked up his third foul early in the second quarter, giving the Clippers room to move in the paint, where Moses Brown, the Clippers rookie center, enjoyed the spotlight briefly.
Brown caught a quick pass from Wall and dunked it, bringing his teammates to their feet in. He played five minutes in relief for Zubac.
But the first quarter belonged to Zubac, who scored 14 points in 12 minutes — a career high for the Croatian center — and nine rebounds and two blocks. His play kept the Clippers afloat in the opening quarter.
The Pacers had taken an early lead, but the Clippers answered with a 16-2 run to close out the first quarter with a six-point lead.
