The Los Angeles Clippers overcame a 13-point fourth quarter deficit to stun the red-hot Cleveland Cavaliers, picking up their fourth win in five games after earning a 119-117 victory on Monday night at Crypto.com Arena.
The Cavs led 112-100 with just under five minutes left in the fourth but the Clippers rallied to score 15 straight points during an emphatic 19-5 run to complete the impressive comeback win.
“It was a total team effort… Not giving up, not giving in. That’s who we are. It felt good to get back to that,” said Clippers coach Ty Lue.
Paul George finished with 26 points and converted a tiebreaking three-point play with 37 seconds left as Los Angeles closed the game out with free throws on their final possessions.
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“This is our best win,” George said. “I’m gonna continue to keep leading,” George added.
Cleveland suffered its first loss since facing the Toronto Raptors on opening night, and saw its eight-game winning streak come to an end.
Kawhi Leonard missed his eighth straight game due to knee injury management. John Wall rested after not being cleared to play in back-to-back games.
Marcus Morris Sr. had 20 points, making four threes for the Clippers, Reggie Jackson had 18 and seven assists while Terance Mann added 16 points.
“Just fly around, be who you are. Play with that energy, attack the glass… He’s gotten back to that,” said Lue on Mann.
Norman Powell gave the Clippers a big boost late in the game, scoring 13 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter.
“I’m looking forward to building this momentum forward and stacking good days on good days,” Powell said.
Donovan Mitchell recorded a game-high 30 points, making eight 3-pointers for the Cavs, Evan Mobley added a season-high 26 points before fouling out in the final minute of the game.
“It’s nothing to overreact to,” Mitchell said. “We’re not in the locker room freaking out. It sucks to lose. We’re all pissed off about it. But at the end of the day, it’s a lesson and we’ll get better.”
Darius Garland had 19 points and 12 assists while Jarrett Allen added 10 points and a season-high 20 rebounds for Cleveland.
The Cavs outrebounded the Clippers 48-31 but lost the turnover battle as Los Angeles was able to force Cleveland into 17 turnovers on the night.
“This is a great win, a team-boosting win against a really good Cleveland team,” George said. “That was just great for our composure late in the game to find a way to scratch and claw our way back in, and then we just closed it out.”
The Clippers will next host the struggling Los Angeles Lakers (2-8) on Wednesday night at 7:00 p.m.
