Leonard has season-high 36 to send Clippers past Spurs
Kawhi Leonard scored a season-high 36 points against his former team, and the visiting Los Angeles Clippers snapped a two-game skid by beating the San Antonio Spurs 131-126 on Friday night.
The Clippers had seven players in double figures, including Norman Powell with 26 points and Paul George with 16.
Keldon Johnson had 23 points for San Antonio, which has lost nine of 11. Josh Richardson added 17 points, Zach Collins had a season-high 17 and Jeremy Sochan had 16.
The Clippers won the second game of their four-game road trip.
The Clippers were nearly back to full strength with Leonard and George playing together for just the third time in January.
Leonard put on a show on the court where he won NBA Finals MVP in 2014 with the Spurs.
The 6-foot-7 forward was 13for-18 from the field and 4-for-5 on 3-pointers. He added seven assists, four rebounds and two steals.
Leonard scored 13 points in just under 3½ minutes starting midway through the third quarter to give the Clippers a 93-90 lead. Leonard had three 3pointers and a left-handed dunk in the run.
The Clippers set an opponent high with 41 points in the opening quarter, besting the mark they shared with 40 points against the Spurs in the opening quarter on Nov. 19.
San Antonio responded by holding Los Angeles to 24 points in the second quarter on 11-for-22 shooting. The Clippers had six turnovers in the second quarter that resulted in nine points compared to just two points off one turnover by the young Spurs.
Mavericks 115, Heat 90: Luka Doncic had 34 points and 12 rebounds and host Dallas turned up the defensive intensity in a victory over Miami. The Mavericks were without No. 2 scorer Christian Wood, who missed the first of what will be multiple games with a broken left thumb.
Hawks 139, Knicks 124: Dejounte Murray scored 29 points, Trae Young added 27 and Atlanta pulled away at the start of the fourth quarter to beat visiting New York. The Hawks (24-22) extended their season-best winning streak to five games. De’Andre Hunter had 20 points. Magic 123, Pelicans 110: Franz Wagner had 30 points and nine assists, Cole Anthony scored 22 points and host Orlando beat New Orleans. CJ McCollum led New Orleans with 23 points. Jonas Valanciunas had 20 points and 10 rebounds, and Trey Murphy III added 18 points for the Pelicans.