Kawhi Leonard scored 19 of his 31 points in the second quarter when the Los Angeles Clippers seized control and cruised to a 132-100 rout of the Brooklyn Nets on Friday night in New York.
Leonard finished two points shy of his season high, and his 10-for-14 shooting helped the Clippers (42-31) win for the seventh time in eight games and 10th time in their last 12. Leonard also contributed six rebounds and four of the Clippers’ 11 steals.
Leonard scored 25 in the first half and sat for good late in the third after playing 27 minutes.
Ivica Zubac added 21 and 12 rebounds as the Clippers won both meetings from the Nets (23-51) by a combined 91 points. Los Angeles rolled to a 59-point home win over Brooklyn on Jan. 15.
James Harden contributed 17 points and six assists in 29 minutes as the Clippers shot 55 percent from the floor and 51.4 percent (19-of-37) from 3-point range. Patty Mills scored all 14 of his points in the fourth quarter, while Norman Powell finished with 11.
Los Angeles outscored the Nets 79-42 in the second and third quarters. The Nets took their third straight lopsided loss and saw their losing streak reach six games. Brooklyn has lost 17 of 20 games since the All-Star break, and its past three losses were decided by a combined 81 points.
Keon Johnson scored 13 points to lead Brooklyn, and Cameron Johnson finished with 11. Brooklyn’s other three starters, Ziaire Williams, Nic Claxton and D’Angelo Russell, were held to a combined 17 points.
Brooklyn’s bright spot was Drew Timme, who posted 11 points and 10 rebounds in his NBA debut after joining the team on a multi-year contract from the G-League earlier Friday.
After getting blown out in the opening quarters of their previous two games. Brooklyn held a 27-26 lead through the opening 12 minutes.
Los Angeles asserted itself in the latter portion of the second by ending the half with a 25-6 run over the final 5:47. Leonard capped his big half by hitting a 34-foot 3-pointer with three seconds left for a 68-48 lead by halftime.
Leonard hit a trey in the opening minute of the third, and the Clippers opened a 30-point lead when Kris Dunn stole the ball from Williams and coasted in for a layup with just under nine minutes left.
Zubac’s dunk padded the cushion to 89-54 lead a little over two minutes later, and the lead reached 40 on another basket by the center with 3:42 left.
