Four players scored 20 or more points for the LA Clippers on Tuesday night, including 27 points from Lou Williams in a 128-109 win over the Hornets.
The LA Clippers had one of their most complete games of the season on Tuesday night, a 128-109 victory over the Charlotte Hornets. LA was led by Lou Williams, who had 27 points and 10 assists off the bench. Montrezl Harrell tacked on another 23 points, 11 rebounds and five assists as well, helping the Clipper bench reach 63 points for the night.
Williams and Harrell weren’t the only two Clippers who scored 20 or more points — Tobias Harris and Danilo Gallinari did so as well. Harris finished with 23 points and six rebounds, and Gallinari added 20 points, five rebounds and four assists.
Not only do these numbers speak volumes about LA’s balanced attack, but they show just how good the ball movement was on Tuesday night. The Clippers finished with 28 assists to just 10 turnovers, easily one of the best ratios of their season.
On defense, the Clippers had an equally impressive game. Kemba Walker, one of the league’s best scorers, was held to just 13 points on 6-of-18 shooting thanks to some stout defense from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Avery Bradley. The two combined to hold their opponents to 27 combined points on 11-of-26 shooting, per the NBA’s defensive box score.
In addition, the LA Clippers recorded a season-high 11 blocks, four of which came from Gilgeous-Alexander. He’s had a knack for stuffing the stat sheet so far this season, and with time, he could become one of the more well-rounded guards in the league.
With the win, the Clippers moved to 24-16 and now sit within a game of the third-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder. And with a favorable, home-dominated January schedule, it’s likely the Clippers move further up the standings. After Thursday’s matchup in Denver, the Clippers will host Detroit, New Orleans, Utah and Golden State, all of which are winnable games.
Tuesday night’s win was LA’s third in a row, the team’s first winning streak of three games or better since November 28. It’s a welcome sign for a Clippers team that entered December with the West’s best record, but only won six games during the month.
LA will have a difficult test on Thursday against the Nuggets, but if the last outing is any indication of what’s to come, Clippers fans should feel comfortable entering hostile territory.
The LA Clippers will play in Denver tomorrow night at 6:00 PM PST.