INGLEWOOD– Despite a 4th quarter rally by the Purple and Gold, the Los Angeles Clippers defeated the Los Angeles Lakers, 112-104 at a packed Intuit Dome on Thursday,  January 22. The Clippers have won seven of eight and 14 of 17 as they continue their upward climb from the depths of the Western Conference.

Leonard, who missed a stretch when his team had nearly bottomed out in the standings, has a left knee contusion but he didn’t sit for long in the fourth. He scored 24 points on the night, his career-high 23rd consecutive game with at least 20 points.

At one point the Clippers had a dismal 6-21 record. Rather than tank games to get a higher lottery pick in next year’s NBA Draft, the Clippers have become a force in the Western Conference.

These Clippers have been resurected; winning 14 of 17 games while salvaging their season. LeBron James scored 4 points and Doncic hit a 3-pointer to cap a 19-7 run that closed the Lakers within two, 93-91 with only 3:00 minutes remaining.

Ivica Zubac’s reverse dunk and John Collins’ 3-pointer extended the Clippers’ lead to eight points and they closed it out on Harden’s pair of free throws. Zubac had 18 points along with 19 rebounds, he becomes the Clipper with the second most rebounds in franchise history.

Coming in, the Lakers were confident having beat the Denver Nuggets on the road. NBA scoring leader Luka Doncic once again was terrific- 32 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists-and  LeBron James added 23 points.

The Lakers fell to 5-6 in their last 11 as consistency and bad defense continues to wreak havoc in Laker land.

The Clippers dominated the first half, outscoring the Lakers 17-7 — including nine in a row — over the final minutes to go into halftime leading 64-47.

It was a tale of two halves, the Lakers outscored them 19-7 to go into the fourth trailing 86-72. James opened the spurt with a 3-pointer and ended it with a huge dunk off Harden’s turnover after Doncic chipped in 9 points in the quarter.

James Harden had 18 points and 10 assists, who had seven players in double figures.

Up next for both LA teams is the Laker visit the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday to open a six-game Grammy road trip against Doncic’s old team.

The Clippers meanwhile host the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday.