INGLEWOOD, Calif.- – — Norman Powell scored 29 points and James Harden added 26 points to help the Clippers knockoff the Miami Heat 109-98 on Monday night.
Harden scored 13 of his 26 points in the decisive third quarter and added 11 assists & 5 rebounds.
Harden and Powell accounted for the last 21 points of the game for Los Angeles.
After trailing by five points at the half. The Clippers dominated the second half with their defensive intensity and shot-making abilities.
“I thought James [Harden] really got going to help propel us to the win, but I thought we figured out the zone and how we wanted to attack it,” coach Tyronn Lue said. “I thought in that second half we really did a good job of just locking in to how we wanted to execute against that zone and we were able to really get some good shots and like you said, knock down shots as well.”
Ivica Zubac chipped in as well helping by dominating the paint and finishing the game with 20 points and 21 rebounds for his 25th double-double of the year.
It was the Clippers first game in five days after their scheduled game on Saturday was postponed due to the deadly wildfires in Los Angeles county. The team gave their fans white towels with LA Strong and the state of California on them.
“It was good. It was good to see people come and show up. Hopefully take their minds off the devastation and tragedy that is going on,” Powell said after the game. “Shoutout to the first responders and everybody that is helping the people and families in need donating.”
“It was good finally to get out there to get out in front of our fans. Kind of just forget about it for 48minutes and play the game we love and get our mind off of it a little bit” Zubac said.
The Clippers are now 21-17 and will host the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday night.
