Kawhi Leonard scored 41 points and James Harden added 29 as the Los Angeles Clippers defeated the Houston Rockets 128-108 on Tuesday night.
Leonard shot 16 of 23 from the field and 4 of 5 from three-point range, helping the Clippers win consecutive games for only the second time this season, News.Az reports, citing AP.
Los Angeles came off a 103-88 victory over the Lakers on Saturday, which snapped a five-game losing streak. The team’s only other back-to-back wins this season were against Phoenix and Portland from October 24-26.
Harden contributed 29 points, shooting 7 of 14 from the field and 3 of 8 from three, aided by 12-for-13 free-throw shooting. John Collins and Kobe Sanders scored 13 points each, while Kris Dunn added 11, as Los Angeles shot 54% (20 of 37) from beyond the arc.
For Houston, Kevin Durant led with 22 points on 8-of-15 shooting, while Alperen Sengun had 19 points and 11 rebounds. Amen Thompson scored 19, and Jabari Smith Jr. added 16. The Rockets made only 9 of 30 three-point attempts (30%) and have lost four of their last five games.
After trailing by six points following the first quarter, the Clippers outscored Houston 34-23 in the second, taking a 63-58 lead into halftime. Leonard scored 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting in the first half, and Harden added 11. Durant had 17 first-half points for Houston, while Sengun scored 15 and Smith contributed 11.
Los Angeles extended its lead to 98-82 after three quarters and held on to win comfortably.
Up next:
Rockets: at Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday.
Clippers: at Portland Trail Blazers on Friday.