Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - Blake Griffin tallied 20 points and 11 rebounds as the Los Angeles Clippers made it look easy in taking a 106-96 victory over a Houston Rockets team playing without James Harden.

The Clippers got off to an impressive start, falling just shy of 50 points before the end of the first quarter. Chauncey Billups and Caron Butler each contributed 19 points to help Los Angeles to its third win in a row.

Chris Paul added 10 points and 11 assists for the Clippers, who will play their Staples Center co-tenants in the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday prior to the All-Star break.

Without their leading scorer, the Rockets fell into a large deficit early and were unable to recover. Harden, who injured his ankle on Tuesday against the Golden State Warriors, was a late scratch after experiencing soreness during warmups.

Chandler Parsons scored 17 points, while Jeremy Lin and James Anderson each donated 14 in the setback.

The Sports Network