CLIPPERS WIN!!! pic.twitter.com/9gp5oaKSwW
— LA Clippers (@LAClippers) March 7, 2024
Leonard scored 16 second-half points after a sub-par first half, as the Clippers started slow and went just a measly 25% shooting beyond the arc.
His and-one pull-up jumper at the 2:06 mark of the fourth quarter gave his squad a five-point cushion, 114-109.
George also bounced back after misfiring in the first 24 minutes, scoring only two points. The nine-time All-Star poured 19 points in the final two quarters, including a clutch three in the fourth that gave the Clippers their first lead since the first quarter at 111-109.🗣? COUNT IT, KAWHI pic.twitter.com/LiqfwFPozP
— LA Clippers (@LAClippers) March 7, 2024
What a sequence!
— NBA (@NBA) March 7, 2024
Plumlee swat on one end... PG cashes the 3 for the lead on the other 🔥
LAC-HOU Late 4Q on ESPN pic.twitter.com/HltgooNtjO
James Harden, in his first game in Houston as a Clipper, had five rebounds and seven dimes in 39 minutes of action. The former MVP spent 10 seasons as a Rocket where he emerged as one of the top players in the league.
On the other hand, Alperen Sengun followed up his 45-point game, 16-rebound performance last night with his fourth career triple-double of 23 points, 19 rebounds, and 14 assists.
Alpi's on his wizardry early 🧙??? pic.twitter.com/vBLR8StL2C
— Houston Rockets (@HoustonRockets) March 7, 2024
Sengun already had a 9-13-6 statline by the end of the first half with the Rockets taking a double-digit lead at 57-44.
Jabari Smith Jr. added 19 markers while Cameron Whitmore had 17, including a nasty windmill dunk early in the second frame.
The Clippers improved to 40-21 with the win, while the Rockets fell to 27-35 in a top-heavy Western Conference.
