James Harden scored 31 points and Kawhi Leonard added 26 to lead the Los Angeles Clippers to a 121-105 victory over the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center on Friday. Jordan Miller made his first six shots en route to 21 points, helping Los Angeles bounce back from a loss to the Knicks on Wednesday.
John Collins contributed 16 points, while Leonard, who was questionable with a sprained right ankle, finished with 19 points in the second half after a slow start. Harden shot 10-for-13 from the field and added six assists, exploiting Brooklyn’s lineup of rookies and first-round picks.
The Clippers opened the game with an 8-0 run and extended the lead to 21 early, with Harden and Leonard dominating in the paint and from midrange. Los Angeles maintained control through a 10-0 run to start the second quarter, taking a 63-47 halftime lead.
Brooklyn’s Egor Demin scored 19 points, but the Nets could not overcome Michael Porter Jr.’s struggles, who finished with 18 points while missing all nine of his 3-point attempts. The Nets briefly cut the deficit to single digits early in the third, but a Leonard 3-pointer kept the lead in double digits for the remainder.
Los Angeles shot 59% from the field, including 58% from 3-point range, while outrebounding Brooklyn 37-39 and recording 15 assists. Brooklyn made 40% of its shots and hit 32% from beyond the arc, but turnovers and missed 3-pointers prevented a serious comeback.
The Clippers improved to 14-23 and have won eight of their last 10 games, setting up a Saturday matchup against the Detroit Pistons. Brooklyn falls to 11-24 and will face the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday as they try to regain momentum in the Eastern Conference.
