Visits: 6
Kawhi Leonard had 35 points and 12 rebounds to lead the LA Clippers to a come-from-behind 111-106 win against the Los Angeles Lakers on Christmas Day at Staples Center.
LA Clippers 111-106 Los Angeles Lakers
2:09 Kawhi Leonard had 35 points and 12 rebounds to lead the visiting Los Angeles Clippers to a come-from-behind 111-106 win against the Los Angeles Lakers on Christmas Day at Staples Center.
Montrezl Harrell scored 18 points off the bench, and Paul George had 17 points on 5-for-18 shooting for the Clippers, who are 2-0 against the Lakers this season.
With 3.6 seconds to go and the Clippers up by three, Patrick Beverley blocked a LeBron James three-point attempt. George then made two free throws to seal the outcome.
Kyle Kuzma scored a season-high 25 points off the bench for the Lakers, who have lost four in a row. They had not dropped consecutive games all season before the current skid. Anthony Davis scored 24 points, and James finished with 23 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists.
After trailing by as many as 15 in the third quarter, the Clippers pulled even at 86-86 entering the fourth.
James hit a pull-up jumper to give the Lakers a 101-94 lead with 6:39 left, but seven straight points by the Clippers tied the game again. Leonard twice made two free throws to give the Clippers a four-point lead, the second time with 2:03 left, and the Lakers managed just one point the rest of the way.
The Clippers improved to 12-3 this season with George and Leonard in the line-up.
Houston Rockets 104-116 Golden State Warriors
1:47 Glenn Robinson III and Draymond Green each bombed in a pair of three-pointers in a late flurry as the Golden State Warriors rallied to stun the Houston Rockets 116-104 in San Francisco.
All five Golden State starters scored in double figures and the Warriors limited Houston to 16-of-51 shooting on three-point attempts, helping the Christmas hosts win for the fourth time while playing in the NBA holiday showcase each of the past seven seasons.
The Rockets’ Russell Westbrook led all scorers with 30 points, but he shot just 11-of-32 overall and missed all eight of his three-point attempts as Houston saw a four-game winning streak come to an end.
Damion Lee paced the balanced Warriors attack with 22 points, while Green and D’Angelo Russell went for 20 apiece, Robinson added 18 and Willie Cauley-Stein had 10.
Houston led by as many as 13 points in the first half and seven in the third quarter before Cauley-Stein and Marquese Chriss slammed home dunks in a 10-0 Golden State run late in the third period that allowed the Western Conference’s worst team the upset win.
Houston went back in front one last time at 97-96 on a three-pointer by James Harden with 7:59 remaining, but Golden State, who have ended the Rockets’ season in the playoffs in four of the past five seasons, then dominated the rest of the game.
Robinson and Green led the fast finish with their three-pointers, helping Golden State score 20 of the game’s last 27 points.
Harden shot well for the Rockets, scoring 24 points on 9-for-18 shooting and 6-for-10 from three-point range, but the Warriors effectively kept him off the free throw line (0-for-1) and trapped him into giving up the ball on most second-half possessions.
New Orleans Pelicans 112-100 Denver Nuggets
Brandon Ingram had 31 points, sinking 7-of-9 shots from three-point range, as the visiting New Orleans Pelicans beat the Denver Nuggets 112-100.
Jrue Holiday had 20 points, eight assists and six steals, Josh Hart scored 16 points, JJ Redick finished with 15, and Derrick Favors had eight points, eight assists and 13 rebounds for the Pelicans.
New Orleans has won three of their past four games immediately after a 13-game losing streak.
Nikola Jokic finished with 23 points and 10 rebounds, Jerami Grant scored 17 off the bench, and Gary Harris had 15 for Denver, who had their seven-game winning streak snapped.
New Orleans led for the entire second half, with Denver getting as close as 73-72 with five minutes left in the third, but the Pelicans had an answer for each run.
Holiday hit a three-pointer and Ingram a driving lay-up to build the lead again, and the visitors went into the fourth up 84-80.
Monte Morris sank a three-pointer early in the final period to get the Nuggets within a point, but they missed two three-point attempts later that would have given them the lead.
New Orleans responded with a dunk by Jaxson Hayes then Ingram hit a long three-pointer, his sixth of the night, to put New Orleans ahead 107-97 and effectively seal the win.
Milwaukee Bucks 109-121 Philadelphia 76ers
1:44 Joel Embiid supplied 31 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to a resounding 121-109 Christmas Day win over the Milwaukee Bucks.
It was Embiid’s seventh game this season with at least 30 points and 10 rebounds.
Ben Simmons had 15 points, 14 assists and seven rebounds for the Sixers, who won their third in a row and tied a franchise record with 21 made three-pointers.
Tobias Harris scored 22 points and went 5-of-7 from beyond the arc. Josh Richardson added 18 points, Furkan Korkmaz scored 16 and Al Horford had 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Khris Middleton led the Bucks with 31 points while Giannis Antetokounmpo added 18 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists, but shot a 8-for-27. George Hill scored 15 points as Milwaukee’s record dropped to 27-5.
Boston Celtics 118-102 Toronto Raptors
1:42 Jaylen Brown scored a game-high 30 points to lead the Boston Celtics to a 118-102 Christmas Day road win over the Toronto Raptors.
Kemba Walker added 22 points for the Celtics, who have won four in a row and ended Toronto’s 34-game home winning streak against Atlantic Division teams.
The Celtics have won the first two games between the teams this season. They meet again in Boston on Saturday.
Gordon Hayward added 14 points for the Celtics, Daniel Theis had 13 points, Enes Kanter had 12 points and 11 rebounds off the bench and Jayson Tatum had 11 points and nine rebounds.
Fred VanVleet had 27 points for the Raptors, who have lost two in row. Chris Boucher added a career-best 24 points and Kyle Lowry contributed 14 points and Serge Ibaka had 12 points.
