Clippers continue dominance over Lakers

The battle of Los Angeles was no contest. The quest for the highest possible playoff seed is another story for the Clippers and Lakers.
Norman Powell scored 27 points, Kawhi Leonard added 25 in a game-high 43 minutes and the Clippers improved their playoff seeding chances with a 125-118 win over LeBron James and the Lakers on Wednesday night.
Playing without injured Paul George, the Clippers got 17 points and 13 rebounds from Ivica Zubac and Russell Westbrook added 14 points.
The Clippers’ 11th straight victory over their Crypto.com Arena hallmates pulled them into a tie with idle Golden State for fifth in the West at 42-38. The Clippers and Lakers came into their final meeting of the season tied in the standings at 41-38.
The Clippers can help themselves with wins in their last two regular-season games.
The Lakers had already clinched at least a play-in spot, but are trying to finish in the top six and earn one of the guaranteed postseason berths. The Clippers own the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Lakers.
“Whatever we end up, that’s where we end up,” James said. “For us, it’s always about health. Over the last couple years, that’s been our Achilles’ heel.”
James had 33 points – 30 in the second half – eight rebounds, seven assists and six turnovers for the Lakers, who were closing out a back-to-back. Anthony Davis had 17 points and 11 rebounds for the Lakers, who had won four in a row and seven of eight.
The Clippers came in fresh, having had three days off. The Lakers, by comparison, eked out an overtime win at Utah on Tuesday night that required James and Davis to play even more minutes on the front end of the back-to-back.
“It was one of those scheduling conflicts,” James said. “It definitely got the best of us tonight.”
(NBA)