Jamal Crawford helps Los Angeles Clippers cool down Chicago Bulls

March 5 (UPI) -- CHICAGO -- After the Los Angeles Clippers had dropped four of their last five games, the message Doc Rivers delivered to his team on Saturday was a simple one.

Just find a way to win.

Jamal Crawford was listening and made sure the rest of his teammates followed his lead.

Crawford scored 25 points off the bench, Chris Paul scored 17 and four starters reached double figures for the Clippers in a 101-91 win over the Chicago Bulls at the United Center.

Crawford scored 17 points in the second half when the Clippers (37-25) erased a six-point halftime deficit and led by as many as 16 points. Blake Griffin had 16 points and J.J. Redick finished with 13 for Los Angeles.

Crawford, who shot 10 of 17 from the field, was the one who sparked the effort.

"When he gets going, there's nobody like him off the bench and scoring-wise," Griffin said. "To see him do what he does best is great for our team."

The timing couldn't have been better. The Clippers, who had gone 1-4 since the All-Star break, snapped a two-game losing streak with the win.

Marreese Speights gave the Clippers a 13-point advantage with 9:18 remaining after they had trailed by as many as 10 points in the first half.

Luc Mbah a Moute, who scored 12 points, and Crawford sparked a 12-3 scoring run to close out the third quarter when Los Angeles built a nine-point cushion capped by a Crawford 3-pointer with one second remaining.

And once Crawford's teammates realized he had the hot hand, they didn't stop going to him the rest of the night.

"(Coach) Doc (Rivers) and my teammates always want me to be more aggressive, to be that weapon and be that threat," Crawford said.

The Clippers never looked back.

And after a night when Los Angeles turned the ball over 23 times in a loss to the Milwaukee Bucks to continue to their slide, Crawford's spark gave the Clippers exactly what they needed.

"We needed a win," Rivers said. "My pregame speech was, 'Find a way to win.' That was it."

Jimmy Butler scored 16 points and Robin Lopez had 12 for the Bulls (31-30), who had won five of their last six games before Saturday's loss. Bobby Portis scored 11 points for Chicago, which also got 10 points from Dwyane Wade.

But two nights after their defense made the difference in a win against the Golden State Warriors, the Bulls' offense struggled and managed just 30 points in the second half and just 12 in the third quarter when the Clippers took over.

"In the second half, we missed shots, we didn't get calls and it affected us on the other end," Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg said. "... We have to find a way to fight through the tough times and understand what makes us a successful team. When we get (the ball) up the floor, we're pretty tough to stop. That all stopped in the second half."

The Bulls led 61-55 at halftime after building a double-digit lead in the first half. The Clippers used a 12-2 run late in the second quarter to get to within two points. But Portis scored six straight points to open the gap back up before Paul connected on a 3-pointer to shrink the deficit back to six.

But after the Bulls flourished over the first two quarters, Crawford led the charge for the Clippers coming out of the half. And once he found a rhythm and the rest of his teammates fled off his energy, the Clippers again turned into the kind of team Rivers believes can succeed, but that had to play out of the funk it found itself heading into Saturday night's game.

"I thought there was a different defensive effort (in the second half)," Rivers said. "When you hold someone to 30 points in a half, with the way we score, we're probably going to win."

NOTES: Clippers PG Chris Paul played Saturday night after he was hit on his surgically repaired thumb on Friday night against Milwaukee. Paul missed 14 games earlier this season with a torn ligament. "He got hit on it and it hurts," Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. "That injury -- it hurts when you get hit on it. A lot. It doesn't do anything (to make the injury worse). It just hurts." ... F Brice Johnson (back) and C Diamond Stone were inactive. ... Bulls PG Michael Carter-Williams returned after missing three games with a knee injury. Carter-Williams, who started while the Bulls struggled with injuries to F Jimmy Butler and F Paul Zipser, said Carter-Williams will likely remain in a reserve role. ... G Isaiah Canaan and G Anthony Morrow were inactive for Chicago.