The Los Angeles Clippers beat the Los Angeles Lakers 127–116 on Tuesday night, their first win in three games this season. Kawhi Leonard had a triple-double, James Harden scored 23 points, and Harden had 10 assists.
Leonard scored 25 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, and gave out 10 assists. Three of those assists were very important in the fourth quarter, when the Clippers were holding on to a slim lead.
The Lakers’ D’Angelo Russell had 27 points and 10 assists, and Anthony Davis had 26 points and 12 rebounds. LeBron James sat on the bench and watched the game.
James’ left ankle hurts every day, so he can’t do much. They didn’t have big man Ivica Zubac because he hurt his right leg and will be out for at least a month.
The Lakers are now 22-23, which is below.500 after their fourth straight loss on the road. One time, early in the game, they were ahead by one point.
They’ve won 13 games in a row and three in a row.
Early in the fourth, the Lakers got within two points twice. Norman Powell made a corner 3-pointer after Leonard got a pass from Leonard to George. George then made a layup. Powell scored another basket, and Leonard added two free throws to end a 9-0 run that made the Clippers’ lead 119-108. Powell had 17 points in the end.
After going down in the middle of the court in the fourth, Lakers forward Cam Reddish could barely walk off the court on his right leg.
In the third, the Lakers either went for the basket or made 3s. Russell scored the first seven points for them. He and Austin Reaves each made a three-pointer, which cut the Lakers’ lead to 92-88.
Russell Westbrook made two 3-pointers in the middle of a goalie call on Rui Hachimura, and then Amir Coffey’s 3-pointer gave the Clippers a 106-97 lead in the fourth. Westbrook scored 16 points in the end.
In the first half, the Clippers made 66% of their shots from the field. They also went on a 15-9 run to take a 77-64 lead into halftime. Leonard hit all seven of his field goals in the first half, when both teams scored on almost every trip down the court.
Whilst making a 3-point shot in the first quarter, Westbrook was missing his right shoe.