NBA highlights on Jan. 23: Leonard takes Clippers to victory with career 2nd triple-double

The Los Angeles Clippers beat the Los Angeles Lakers 127-116 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, California, on Tuesday, securing their third straight win.

Kawhi Leonard scored 25 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists for the Clippers, his second triple-double in his career. He shot 11-for-16 from the field, making eight of his 10 jumpers. The team sent a small-ball squad to the court for the final nine minutes of the fourth quarter. He played center in that lineup, doing a good job of both containing Anthony Davis and making plays.

The Lakers missed LeBron James in Tuesday's game, but they still managed to keep the game close until the final five minutes, thanks to their dominance in the paint. The team grabbed 13 offensive rebounds and scored 60 points in the paint. Davis alone contributed four rebounds on the offensive glass and 20 points in the paint, where he made 10 of his 15 field goals. Jarred Vanderbilt grabbed six offensive rebounds, even more than Davis did.

The Lakers' advantage in size offset their inferiority in 3-point shooting. The purple and gold missed 21 of their 32 triples. Austin Reaves and Taurean Prince combined to shoot 4-for-14 from downtown. Though Davis and Vanderbilt made up for such underperformance by causing a lot of damage in the restricted area and on the glass, the Clippers were also encouraged to close in harder and harder on the defensive end.

The Clippers continued to miss their starting center, Ivica Zubac, on Tuesday. The two big men they tried, Mason Plumlee and Daniel Theis, couldn't even slow Davis down. Therefore, when coach Tyronn Lue sent the small-ball squad to the game in the final period, he was both betting on their five-out offensive performance and their defensive performance built on general quickness and Leonard's comprehensive defensive ability.

The Clippers didn't let their coach down. Leonard was strong enough to stop Davis from entering deep positions easily and quickly. Meanwhile, Paul George, Norman Powell and Amir Coffey worked very hard to deflect the Lakers' passes to Davis. Moreover, even when Davis received the ball, he would find himself surrounded by four defenders, who understandably showed no respect for the Lakers' outside shooters.

The purple and gold must have been missing James and his ability to compress the opponents' defensive line with his sharp penetration. D'Angelo Russell had 27 points and 10 assists on Tuesday night, but he launched attacks more via shooting in the long- and middle-range instead of charging the paint. The other playmaker, Reaves, lacked the vision and passing skills to find teammates on the weak side. As a result, the team's players had to fight without allies at the end of the game.

Other games on Tuesday (away teams come first):

Denver Nuggets 114-109 Indiana Pacers

The Pacers had to host the reigning NBA champions at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana, without their league assists leader Tyrese Haliburton, but they still kept the suspense of the game alive until the final four minutes. The home team had six players score double-digit points and posted 60 points in the paint. When Aaron Nesmith made a layup at 4:18 in the fourth quarter, he tied the score at 100 for the Pacers.

Then Nikola Jokic stood out to dominate the competition. He went 4-for-5, including knocking down two 3-pointers, to get 10 of the Nuggets' final 14 points. Jamal Murray added the other four points and assisted Jokic in making two of his four shots. The star duo both got 31 points. Jokic dropped a triple-double that also included 13 rebounds and 10 assists, his 13th this season.

Utah Jazz 124-153 New Orleans Pelicans

The Pelicans drained 23 triples at 50 percent to walk over the Jazz at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Tuesday. C.J. McCollum alone made nine shots out of 11 attempts behind the arc. Zion Williamson didn't shoot any 3-pointer, got 17 points and delivered a team-high 11 assists.

The Jazz suffered their third consecutive loss and fell below .500 in winning percentage. They are in 10th place in the Western Conference, still in the play-in tournament zone, but half a game ahead of the Houston Rockets and 1.5 games above the Golden State Warriors.

New York Knicks 108-103 Brooklyn Nets

Portland Trail Blazers 109-111 Oklahoma City Thunder