By: Jesse Larch, Sports Talk Philly Staff 
The Sixers will meet the Los Angeles Clippers for the second time this season on Saturday at 3:30p.m. inside of Staples Center. This is the first of two consecutive games inside of Staples Center for the Sixers, who will play the Lakers tomorrow night.
The Clippers (39-26) were stunned in their visit to Wells Fargo Center earlier in the season when the Sixers won by a score of 121-110 in a come-from-behind victory.
Clippers point guard Austin Rivers took exception in losing to the Sixers:
"We was up 19, man. We're supposed to just squash them. They kept fighting, kept doing what they supposed to do. Everybody know that's they M.O., man. They don't have the talent that we have. They don't have the talent that other teams have. So they bank everything on playing hard. They outwork teams. That's what they do."
In that first meeting Austin Rivers started at point guard for the Clippers who were without star point guard Chris Paul. Paul has since returned and will play against the Sixers on Saturday. The Clippers have no injuries entering Saturday's tilt.
Since that last meeting the Sixers have subtracted Ersan Ilyasova and Nerlens Noel from the roster who started that game and combined for 29 points, 13 rebounds, eight assists and three blocks against the frontcourt duo of Blake Griffin and Deandre Jordan.
The Sixers are coming off of an overtime loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday. In that game the emergence of rookie power forward Dario Saric continued, when he score a career-high 28 points while shooting 57.1% from three-point range.
Saric has built a strong case for the rookie of the year award after teammate Joel Embiid was ruled out for the season, and has been the Sixers best player since Embiid exited the lineup. In Saric's last 10 games, he has averaged 19 points, 9.4 rebounds and four assists.
Despite Saric's strong play, the Sixers have lost six of their last seven games, including three in a row. The Clippers have also struggled recently, losing three of their last five, but they are coming off of a convincing win on Thursday against the Memphis Grizzlies.
Game Notes:
- This is game two of the Sixers four game west coast road trip, and game one of a Los Angeles back to back.
- The Clippers have won nine of their last 10 games against the Sixers with an average margin of 18 points.
Injuries:
- Guard Gerald Henderson is questionable after missing practice on Friday with a sore hip.
- Forward Tiago Splitter is expected to begin a rehab assignment with the Delaware 87ers soon.
- The Clippers have no injuries entering Saturday's game.
Broadcast Information:
- Television – The Comcast Network (Comcast/Xfinity channel 33 SD; 846 HD, Verizon Fios channel 99 SD; 580 HD)
- Radio – 97.5 FM The Fanatic
Projected Lineups:
Philadelphia
PG – T.J. McConnell
SG – Nik Stauskas
SF – Robert Covington
PF – Dario Saric
C – Jahlil Okafor
Los Angeles Clippers
PG – Chris Paul
SG – J.J. Reddick
SF – Luc Mbah a Moute
PF – Blake Griffin
C – Deandre Jordan
