James Harden scored 34 points and Brook Lopez added 31, including a career-high nine 3-pointers, as the Los Angeles Clippers defeated the Portland Trail Blazers 119-103 on Friday night for their third consecutive win.
Kawhi Leonard contributed 28 points, eight rebounds, and six assists, scoring 18 points in the fourth quarter, News.Az reports, citing ESPN.
Deni Avdija led Portland with 27 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists.
The Clippers dominated the second half, outscoring Portland 63-41, including a decisive 19-1 run in the third quarter. Donovan Clingan had made a free throw to give the Blazers a 71-59 lead with 8:16 left in the third, their largest of the game, but the Clippers quickly turned the momentum.
Lopez’s seventh 3-pointer brought the Clippers within 72-67, prompting a technical foul on acting Blazers coach Tiago Splitter, which Leonard converted to make it 72-68. Harden then tied the game at 72 with two free throws and a driving layup.
The Clippers took their first lead at 75-72 on Lopez’s eighth 3-pointer, and he extended it to 78-72 with his ninth. Harden’s four-point play late in the third quarter pushed the lead to 85-77, while Leonard’s emphatic dunk over Clingan made it 95-86.
Portland briefly cut the lead to seven, but the Clippers responded with a six-point possession to push it to 101-88 with 8:19 remaining.
In the first half, after LA narrowed Portland’s lead to 52-50, the Blazers went on a 9-0 run, highlighted by a Shaedon Sharpe fast-break dunk. Following a timeout, a three-point play by Harden and a 3-pointer from Kobe Sanders closed the gap to 62-56 at halftime.
The Clippers will host the Detroit Pistons on Sunday, while the Blazers take on the Boston Celtics.