LOS ANGELES -Elton Brand had 32 points and 10 rebounds, Corey Maggette scored 24 points and the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Golden State Warriors 113-101.

Cuttino Mobley had 22 points for Los Angeles and Sam Cassell added 14 points and 10 assists. The Pacific Division-leading Clippers improved to 8-2, the best start in the franchise’s 36-year history, and pulled back into a tie with defending champion San Antonio for the best record in the Western Conference.

The 8-2 start is the best 10-game stretch for the Clippers at any point of a season since 1978-79, when they were based in San Diego. It also is the first time the Clippers have started 4-0 at home since 1991-92. A victory Wednesday night against Toronto would equal the best home start in franchise history, set in 1983-84.

Baron Davis had 21 points and 13 assists for the Warriors, who have lost five straight to the Clippers – including a four-game sweep last season in which they were held to an average of 87 points. Jason Richardson scored 20 points – including a breakaway 360-degree dunk – but hardly put a dent in a 17-point lead the Clippers built in the third quarter.

Brand, Maggette and Mobley all reached the 20-point mark before the third quarter ended. Mobley’s 3-pointer capped an 18-4 run that made it 85-68 with 3:56 left in the period.

The Warriors opened the fourth with a 13-4 spurt that closed it to 98-92 with 7:41 to play. The Clippers made only one of seven shots in the quarter to that point – a 3-pointer by rookie Daniel Ewing – but Cassell and Mobley each hit a pair of free throws to restore the double-digit lead, and Cassell added a fadeaway baseline jumper for a 104-92 cushion with 4:49 left.

The Warriors got no closer than 12 points after that.

Coming off an emotional 97-91 victory over their Staples Center co-tenants, the Lakers, the Clippers used 18 points from Brand and 14 from Maggette to take a 61-57 halftime lead. Golden State led by as many as eight before the Clippers pulled ahead for good on a layup by Zeljko Rebraca that gave them a 48-46 lead with 41/2 minutes left in the second quarter. Rebraca had 17 points and a career-high 16 rebounds in the previous meeting last Jan. 19.

Davis recorded nine assists during a 5:14 span of the first quarter, engineering a 20-9 run that gave Golden State a six-point lead. The two-time All-Star also managed to squeeze in 10 points during the period.

Notes: The Clippers have beaten the Warriors at least once in each of the last 19 seasons, their longest such streak against any team. Their second-longest current streak is just six seasons, against Milwaukee. They also beat New York and Denver in each of the previous six seasons, but have yet to play either team in 2005-06. … Golden State F Mike Dunleavy Jr. is 2-7 in games his father has coached against him. … The Warriors will play eight of their next nine games at home. … Sunday was the 53rd anniversary of the night the Warriors – then based in Philadelphia – were fouled a record 53 times by the Baltimore Bullets. … Howard Eisley made his Clippers debut, playing nine scoreless minutes with two assists. The 32-year-old guard, playing for his seventh team in 12 NBA seasons, signed as a free agent Thursday. … The Clippers’ sweep of Golden State last season marked the first time they swept a season series of four games or more since taking all four from the San Antonio Spurs and Vancouver Grizzlies in 1996-97. … Clippers G Quinton Ross sat out his second straight game because of back spasms.

AP-ES-11-20-05 1809EST