----- Kawhi Leonard scored a team-high 34 points and Paul George finished with 20 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists as the Los Angeles Clippers topped the Portland Trail Blazers 132-127 Monday night at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, CA.
The short-handed Trail Blazers come up short in Tinseltown!
Kawhi Leonard finished with a team-high 34 points, six rebounds, and five assists to lead the Los Angeles Clippers to a 132-127 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers Monday night at Crypto.com arena in Los Angeles.
Paul George had 20 points, eight rebounds and eight assists for the Clippers, and James Harden added 20 points, seven rebounds and seven assists. Ivica Zubac scored 18 as the Clippers won their fourth-straight game.
Anfernee Simons scored a career-high 38 points and Shaedon Sharpe added 27 for the Blazers, who fell to 6-16 on the season.
Portland played without Malcolm Brogdon (knee soreness), Deandre Ayton (knee soreness), and Jerami Grant (concussion protocol).
The Clippers raced to a 43-32 lead in the first quarter on 76% shooting, but Portland would respond in the second quarter with a 16-9 run as they closed the deficit to one-point at halftime trailing 66-65.
The Clippers led 105-99 heading into the fourth quarter, but the Blazers responded with a 9-3 run to tie the game at 108 with 9:06 remaining on a three-pointer from Sharpe.
Portland trailed 120-116 with 4:35 to play before a three-point from Simons and a bucket from Sharpe helped them grab the lead 121-120 with 3:32 to play.
The Clippers took control of the game the rest of the way by attacking the paint and getting to the free throw line. Los Angeles connected on 15-of-15 from the charity stripe in the final quarter.
Scoot Henderson played his best game as a pro. He finished with a career-high 19 points on 8-of-16 shooting including 3-of-4 from beyond-the-arc.
The Blazers connected on a season best 19-of-40 from three-point range.
Up Next- The Trail Blazers will host the Utah Jazz Thursday night at Moda Center. The game is scheduled to tip off at 7:00 PM.
Chad's Take- The best game we have seen from Scoot this season. The young players are developing and producing for the Trail Blazers.