CLEVELAND — Kawhi Leonard returned, James Harden cooled off and the Clippers finally get to return to Los Angeles.

Donovan Mitchell scored 37 points and took over when the game got close, leading the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 120-105 victory over the Clippers on Sunday night, spoiling Leonard’s return to the lineup after a 10-game absence.

Mitchell helped the Cavs pull away with a flurry of plays late in the third quarter and finished with five 3-pointers, eight rebounds and six assists.

Ivica Zubac had a season-high 33 points – two off his career high – and grabbed 18 rebounds to pace the Clippers. Kawhi Leonard scored 20 in 26-plus minutes in his first game since Nov. 3 because of a sprained right ankle, and Harden had 19 points, but missed all eight of his 3-point attempts the day after scoring a franchise-record 55 points in a victory in Charlotte.

The Clippers (5-12) went 2-8 while Leonard was out and just went 2-4 on a trip that took them through Dallas, Boston, Philadelphia and Orlando before the weekend finish in Charlotte and Cleveland before Tuesday night’s road game against the Lakers at Crypto.com Arena. The Clippers are 2-10 in November and dropped to 2-7 on the road overall.

The visitors trimmed a 13-point deficit to 77-76 on a Nicolas Batum 3-pointer in the third quarter before Mitchell went back to work. The six-time All-Star triggered a 20-3 run that bled into the fourth quarter and extended Cleveland’s lead to 97-79 early in the fourth. He either scored or assisted on 19 of the 20 points during the surge.

Mitchell had consecutive 3-point plays, dropped a 3-pointer and had two assists in the final 3:06 of the third, then made another 3-pointer and had two more assists in the opening minutes of the fourth.

Evan Mobley had 18 points and 10 rebounds and De’Andre Hunter scored 17 points as Cleveland finished 4-2 on a six-game homestand. Darius Garland added eight points and eight assists.

The Cavaliers were without several key players as starting center Jarrett Allen (finger) and guards Lonzo Ball (knee), Sam Merrill (hand) and Craig Porter Jr. (hamstring) sat with injuries.

Cleveland has played 10 different starting lineups while combating injuries.

Clippers guard Chris Paul picked up five assists in 17 minutes. Paul announced his retirement on Saturday via social media, and the 12-time All-Star received a warm ovation from Cleveland’s crowd when he checked into the game.

Clippers shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic (left hip soreness) missed his second straight game.

UP NEXT

The Clippers play at the Lakers on Tuesday at 8 p.m., the third NBA Cup group play game for both teams.