Kawhi Leonard’s late heroics help Clippers edge Rockets
HOUSTON — Playing some of the best basketball of his career, Kawhi Leonard delivered again to send his team into the All-Star break on a winning note.
Leonard scored 19 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter, and his tiebreaking three-point play on a spinning fadeaway jumper with two seconds remaining lifted the Clippers to a 105-102 victory over the Houston Rockets on Wednesday night.
Leonard, who added 12 rebounds and four steals, extended his career-best streak of 20-point games to 33 with his late scoring surge as the Clippers improved to an NBA-best 20-7 since Dec. 20.
“We kept fighting all night. We didn’t give up,” Leonard said. “We thought we could win this basketball game. We didn’t play good basketball yesterday and really not today, so we just wanted to play better basketball. We came out and did that in the fourth quarter.”
The Clippers led by four points when Kevin Durant made one of two free throws before a layup by Alperen Sengun cut the lead to 102-101 with 43 seconds left. Leonard missed a 3-point attempt and Jabari Smith Jr. grabbed a rebound to give Houston the ball.
Sengun made one of two free throws with 7.2 seconds left to tie it, and Leonard got the rebound before the Clippers called a timeout. Leonard then made a fadeaway jumper as he was fouled and hit the free throw to make it 105-102.
Houston’s Tari Eason missed a corner 3-point attempt at the buzzer.
Kris Dunn and Bennedict Mathurin scored 16 points apiece while Brook Lopez had 15 for the Clippers (26-28). John Collins and Derrick Jones Jr. chipped in 12 points each for the visitors, who outscored the Rockets 22-2 in fast-break points and converted Houston’s 21 turnovers into 23 points.
“We love to hoop,” said Leonard, who next takes the court for Sunday’s U.S. vs. the World All-Star Game on Sunday at the Intuit Dome. “In this game, you gotta play almost every other day. Guys kept their heads in the game. They wanted to compete and that’s what we did.”
Durant led the Rockets (33-20) with 21 points and Reed Sheppard (five 3-pointers) added 17 points off the bench. Smith (16 points, 12 rebounds) contributed a double-double while Sengun finished with 16 points, nine rebounds and six assists.
Houston had a two-point lead before the Clippers made five consecutive free throws to make it 98-95 with 2½ minutes remaining.
Durant hit a 3-pointer from the corner a few seconds later to tie it before a pair of free throws by Leonard put the Clippers back on top. A dunk by Collins pushed the lead to 102-98 with about 90 seconds remaining.
The Clippers bridged the final two periods with a 26-6 run that resulted in an 87-80 lead on two Leonard free throws with 8:11 left. The Rockets committed three early turnovers in the period that the Clippers converted into six points.
Houston got going after that, using a 13-4 run, with seven points from Durant, to take a 93-91 lead with 4½ minutes remaining.
Houston led by 13 late in the third quarter before the Clippers went on a 12-0 run to cut the lead to 76-75 with 11 minutes left.
After struggling from 3-point range in Tuesday’s loss to the Rockets, the Clippers shot 4 for 8 in the first quarter of the rematch. The Rockets countered by making 9 of 12 from inside the arc with assists on eight of their 12 field goals in the period en route to a 29-22 lead entering the second quarter.
Sheppard keyed the Rockets’ surge to a 15-point lead in the second, stroking three 3-pointers while tallying 11 points in the first 4:30 of the period. When Durant made a fadeaway jumper with 1:27 left in the half, the Rockets led 56-41, a lead the Clippers shaved to 10 by the intermission.
Despite parting with a pair of starters in 11-time All-Star guard James Harden and center Ivica Zubac before last week’s trade deadline, the Clippers completed a 3-1 trip that included wins against Minnesota and Houston before the break, getting contributions from some of their younger players.
“They’ve been great, willing to learn,” Leonard said of his less-experienced teammates. “They want to play better. I keep telling them to [not be afraid to] keep making mistakes in the game. That’s how you get better. You can’t wait ’til the next game. Just keep doing it in one game and eventually it will turn around for you.”
UP NEXT
The Clippers will host the Denver Nuggets in their first game after the All-Star break on Thursday, Feb. 19.
KAWHI CAPS HIS 19-POINT FINAL QUARTER WITH THE GAME-WINNING AND-1 https://t.co/RFJUUXilv6 pic.twitter.com/q0D58B1aSM
— NBA (@NBA) February 12, 2026
"We love to hoop" – Kawhi Leonard on our 3-1 road trip pic.twitter.com/owLoXKLOF9
— LA Clippers (@LAClippers) February 12, 2026