INDIANAPOLIS — The Clippers spent much of the first half getting run off the court by the team with the worst record in the NBA, but they eventually regrouped behind Kawhi Leonard and Darius Garland.
Leonard made a jumper with 0.4 seconds remaining, and the Clippers rallied from a 24-point deficit to beat the Indiana Pacers, 114-113, on Friday night at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Darius Garland led the Clippers (38-36) with 30 points and Leonard finished with 28, scoring at least 20 for the 50th consecutive game.
The Pacers (16-58) shot a sizzling 8 for 11 from 3-point range in the first quarter, opening a 42-21 lead. The margin grew to 45-21 early in the second quarter before the Clippers stormed back for their fourth straight victory, giving Coach Tyronn Lue the 400th win of his career.
Indiana had gone back ahead 113-108 on Obi Toppin’s jumper with a minute to play. Leonard answered with a jumper, Garland made two free throws and the Clippers got the ball back after Pascal Siakam missed a jumper with less than 10 seconds left. They inbounded along the left side to Leonard, who dribbled into the middle and pulled up from 7 feet away for the winner.
Leonard become the 14th NBA player to score at least 20 points in 50 straight games, a streak that began Nov. 28.
Bennedict Mathurin scored 17 points against his former team, going 12 for 15 from the free-throw line.
The Clippers are currently in eighth place in the Western Conference standings with eight games left in the regular season, almost certain to end up in the four-team Play-In Tournament (seeds 7-10) with Phoenix, Portland and Golden State, battling for the right to earn the seventh or eighth seed and a spot in a best-of-seven first-round playoff series against either Oklahoma City or San Antonio.
Aaron Nesmith scored 26 points and Toppin had 20 for the Pacers, who have dropped two in a row since the victory that snapped their 16-game winning streak. They lost forward Jarace Walker after he was evaluated for a concussion in the first half.
More to come on this story.
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The Clippers play at Milwaukee on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. PT.