Seattle ? Ray Allen knew he’d have to step up for the SuperSonics when Rashard Lewis was accidentally kneed in the thigh on a drive to the basket in the first quarter.
Allen scored 31 points and Vladimir Radmanovic had nine of his 18 points in the fourth quarter, leading the Sonics to a 104-99 victory over the Clippers on Tuesday night.
The Clippers beat the Sonics by 30 points in the season opener Nov. 3 at Staples Center.
Shooting 9-for-20, Allen had his ninth 30-point plus performance of the season.
“When Rashard was out, you just noticed our energy got sapped a little bit from the offensive part of the game,” Allen said. “We couldn’t score. We couldn’t get what we wanted to get.”
But Allen, the NBA’s seventh-leading scorer, took control and had five 3-pointers and added seven assists, too.
“When Rashard’s not in there, a lot has to be created,” Allen said. “It’s not just scoring, though. I have to get other guys opportunities to score.”
Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy called Allen, the Sonics’ only All-Star, one of the top offensive stars in the league.
“He makes plays as they need them,” Dunleavy said. “A couple of the 3-pointers he hit were with guys all over him.”
The Sonics, coming off a victory at home against the Miami Heat and Shaquille O’Neal on Sunday, secured the win in the final 3 1/2 minutes against a Clippers team that lost its second in a row after three straight wins.
Corey Maggette led the Clippers with 20 points. Elton Brand added 17 points and 11 rebounds.
The Sonics outscored the Clippers 11-5 in the final 3:27, with Radmanovic putting Seattle ahead to stay with two free throws after being fouled by Brand.
A 3-pointer by Rashard Lewis with 1:16 left gave Seattle a 100-94 lead before Brand made a free throw with 1:06 to go and Rick Brunson connected on a 16-footer with 40.9 seconds left.
Allen’s driving layup with 17 seconds left put the Sonics ahead 102-97.
The Clippers led 76-74 after three quarters, outscoring the Sonics 11-3 in the final 2:52 of the period. Brand scored six points in the outburst on a pair of layups and two free throws.
Lewis, Seattle’s No. 2 scorer, did not play in the second quarter and was limited to 24 minutes and nine points. The Sonics got five blocked shots from Jerome James and 11 assists from Luke Ridnour.
Lewis said his thigh was extremely sore in the second half, but he felt he had to play because the Sonics needed him.
“It’s just something that you just need to play through,” he said. “When I ran and jumped, it hurt.”
Lewis doesn’t know if he’ll be able to play against the Clippers Wednesday night in Los Angeles.
“I know it’s going to tighten up,” he said. “I think it’s going to be a lot more sore in the morning.”
Seattle’s reserves outscored the Clippers’ 49-23. The Sonics committed a season-low eight turnovers.
“We’ve got so many guys who are hungry from the bench that are ready to make an impact on the game,” Allen said.
Sonics coach Nate McMillan watched his team improve its record to 25-8. Seattle is the fourth team to reach 25 wins this season. The Sonics had only 37 victories and missed the playoffs for the second straight year last season.
“It was a tough game,” McMillan said. “The Clippers they scrap, we knew they would, the first game was very similar and the second half we got involved in the scrap.”
Notes: McMillan won’t coach the Sonics on Wednesday night. After Tuesday night’s game, he flew to Raleigh, N.C., for the funeral of an aunt. Assistant coach Dwane Casey will coach the Sonics in Los Angeles. … Sonics forward Reggie Evans was back in the starting lineup after missing three games with a stomach problem. He was hospitalized during the weekend. “The test results will be back this week and then we’ll know definitely what it is,” Evans said before the game. In 22 minutes, he led the Sonics with nine rebounds.