Paul is upstaged in first game against his former team

They came to Staples Center to cheer the Clippers and alternately cheer and boo Chris Paul in his first game against his former team since forcing a trade to the Houston Rockets last June.

Clearly, both sides had a burning desire to win Monday night and show the other what he now is missing since the separation brought about because Paul no longer saw an opportunity to win an NBA championship with the Clippers after six years of disappointment.

In an intense game in which Blake Griffin of the Clippers and Trevor Ariza of the Rockets were ejected in the fourth quarter, it was Lou Williams who had the biggest drive to push the Clippers to a 113-102 victory.

Williams was one of the players who had come over from the Rockets in the trade for Paul.

And it was Williams who tore the Rockets apart with 31 points and nine assists, giving the Clippers a seasonhigh five-game winning and lifting them above .500 for the first time since Nov. 4, when they were 5-4.

The game elicited a little trashtalking after Griffin scored down low

on Paul, who was called for a foul and complained that the foul should have come before the basket.

Griffin said it was an “And-1,” which made Houston coach Mike D’Antoni upset enough to exchange words with the Clippers forward.

Both were hit with technical fouls.

After Griffin made the free throw to complete a three-point play, the Clippers held a 109-98 lead with 3 minutes 34 seconds to play and all the momentum on their side.

Then, with 1:03 left, Griffin and Ariza exchanged words, and this was after Ariza had words with Austin Rivers, who was sidelined because of an injured ankle and sitting on the bench.

As Griffin walked off the court with his second technical foul, he took off his jersey and threw it into the stands, yelling and swearing as he walked to the locker room.

The Rockets were without injured All-Star guard James Harden, but the Clippers were without injured All-Star center DeAndre Jordan.

Before the game, after Paul had talked to a group of fans in the stands, he hugged Jordan and Clippers assistant coach Sam Cassell at midcourt.

When the pregame introductions started, Paul was cheered.

But when the game started and he touched the ball, he was booed.

Then, when the Clippers honored Paul in the first quarter with a video tribute of his Clippers highlights, ending with, “Thank You CP3,” the fans cheered him, even if he no longer wanted to be with the Clippers.

“When a guy leaves, they leave,” Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. “And when a player of Chris’ ability leaves, they’re basically saying they want to leave to try to win somewhere else. And for the team you’re leaving, you’re never happy with that.”

‘When a player of Chris’ ability leaves, they’re basically saying they want to leave to try to win somewhere else.’ — Doc Rivers