INGLEWOOD, California – Kawhi Leonard scored 45 points, James Harden added 20, and Los Angeles Clippers bounced back from a 21-point lead to beat the Utah Jazz 118-101 on Thursday night, extending their winning streak to a season-best six games.
Leonard was the only Clippers starter on the floor for most of the fourth quarter. He single-handedly tied Utah's points tally in the period (20), with blood on his nose from what looked like a scratch.
Los Angeles made seven straight 3-pointers, and Leonard made four to pull away. Nicolas Batum finished with 14 points and shot 4 of 6 from 3-point range.
The Jazz rallied despite being without three starters. They were led by reserve Kyle Anderson with 22 points (his first 20-point game in nearly three years) and Bryce Sensabaugh with 20. Anderson's eight rebounds were a season-high. Cody Williams also scored 18 points and Isaiah Collier had 16 points and 10 assists.
The game was tied six times in the third as Utah took its first lead of the game.
The Clippers outscored Utah 28-7 to start the game. The Jazz missed their first six shots and had one rebound in the first six minutes.
Utah outscored the Clippers 33–22 in the second (with Leonard scoring L.A.'s first nine points) and trailed 53–50 at halftime.
Utah played without Keyontae George (illness), Lauri Markkanen (knee) and Jusuf Nurkic (toe). The Jazz have lost six of eight.
The Jazz had 58 points in the paint and their bench outscored the Clippers' reserves 51-40.
Jazz: Visit the Golden State Warriors on Saturday.
Clippers: Host the Boston Celtics on Saturday.
