Leonard goes for 31 as Clippers beat Timberwolves

LOS ANGELES — Kawhi Leonard scored 31 points, his ninth straight game with at least that many, and the Los Angeles Clippers beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 118-106 Saturday.

Karl-Anthony Towns countered with 32 points and 12 rebounds for the Timberwolves, his fourth consecutive game with 30 or more points, but it wasn’t enough to keep Minnesota from losing its 11th in a row, matching the team’s skid from December.

Paul George added 21 points in 26 minutes and Lou Williams had 17 for the Clippers, who have won seven of nine.

The Wolves closed within four points in the third on two free throws by Robert Covington after Towns scored five points in a row.

The Clippers dominated the rest of the third thanks to a big effort by the reserves, including six points from Williams sandwiched between Leonard’s dunk and a basket by George. They took a 98-86 lead into the fourth. The Clippers’ bench outscored the Wolves’ reserves, 46-33.

George went down on a drive to the basket while closely guarded by Covington in the third. He stayed in the game before briefly leaving the court.

George scored the Clippers’ first seven points of the fourth, extending their lead to 105-86, and then sat down for good. He was eventually joined on the bench by every starter.

Warriors 131, Cavaliers, 112

CLEVELAND — Glenn Robinson III scored 22 points, Draymond Green tied a career high with 16 assists and the Golden State Warriors dominated the second half, beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 131-112 on Saturday night in a matchup between teams at the bottom of the NBA standings.

Golden State (11-39) has the NBA’s worst record while Cleveland (13-37) has the second-worst record in the Eastern Conference.

The matchup bore little resemblance to when the teams met in the NBA Finals every year from 2015-18. The Warriors won three times while the Cavaliers broke the city’s 52-year championship drought in 2016.

The Warriors trailed 59-52 late in the second quarter, but went on a 53-19 run to take a 105-79 lead going into the fourth. Golden State scored 17 consecutive points -- its biggest run of the season -- to begin the game-changing spurt.

The Warriors hit a team-record 10 3-pointers in the third quarter when they outscored Cleveland 44-19, causing Cavaliers coach John Beilein to send his starters to the bench.

Green matched his high in assists while playing 26 minutes and scoring eight points. The Warriors had seven players in double figures, including D’Angelo Russell with 19 and Damion Lee with 18.

Collin Sexton scored 23 points while Kevin Love had 14 points and 11 rebounds for Cleveland.

Golden State, which has been plagued by injuries, broke a fivegame losing streak and a stretch of 10 in a row on the road. Cleveland, in the early stages of a rebuilding process, has lost 10 straight at home and 15 of 18 overall.

The Warriors recorded their biggest margin of victory this season and won for the first time on the road since Dec. 6 against Chicago. The Cavaliers haven’t won at home since beating Atlanta on Dec. 23.

The game had 11 lead changes and was tied seven times in the first half. The Warriors scored the final nine points and took a 61-59 lead on Lee’s 3-pointer in the closing seconds.

Warriors star guard Stephen Curry, who broke his hand in the fourth game of the season, could return in March. Curry was injured Oct. 30 and had surgery two days later.

Coach Steve Kerr said that Curry has been participating in non-contact and individual drills while also working on his conditioning.