Staff writer Brett Dawson recaps the Thunder’s Monday night loss to the Los Angeles Clippers in Staples Center.

LOS ANGELES — It was the second of back-to-back games. Steven Adams was sidelined with a concussion. The opponent was among the NBA’s hottest teams.

The challenge of Monday was apparent, and coach Billy Donovan conceded that.

But after the Thunder’s 120-98 loss to the Clippers late Monday night at Staples Center, Donovan — while admitting the difficulty of the task — lamented the way his team attacked it.

“Regardless of who’s out or who’s playing, you have a standard that you want to play to, and I just didn’t feel like we played to that standard tonight,” Donovan said.

Some of what went wrong against the Clippers was attributable to Adams’ absence.

It was apparent in the way DeAndre Jordan had free rein in the lane. With Adams out, the Thunder struggled to stop him in the Clippers’ pick-and-roll, and Jordan finished with 19 points and 15 rebounds on 7-of-8 shooting.

But Jordan was hardly the only problem in the paint. Marreese Speights had 23 points and 10 rebounds off the bench.

And even with Clippers point guard Chris Paul out of the game — he sprained his left thumb in the second quarter and didn’t return — the Thunder couldn’t contain the dribble. Austin Rivers had 16 points, Raymond Felton 15 on 7-of-7 shooting.

L.A. scored 62 points in the paint.

That was a point of emphasis, Clippers coachDoc Riverssaid, after the Thunder “destroyed us in the paint in Oklahoma” during its 114-88 win against L.A. on New Year’s Eve. So the Clippers went into the lane, and the Thunder offered little resistance.

“Just wasn’t ready to play,” said guard Russell Westbrook, who finished with 24 points, five rebounds and four assists. “Gotta be more physical.”

Westbrook was frustrated much of the night.