SportyTV | NBA: Leonard scores 45 to keep Clippers surging

Kawhi Leonard scored 45 points and the Los Angeles Clippers routed the Minnesota Timberwolves 153-128 on Wednesday night, moving above .500 with their third straight victory and sixth in seven games.

Eighth in the Western Conference at 33-32 after opening 6-21, the Clippers had their highest points total of the season. They blew out Minnesota after beating New York on Monday night to open a five-game homestand.

Leonard was 15 of 20 from the field, 6 of 9 on 3s and made 9 of 10 free throws. Los Angeles made 19 of 37 3s.

Bennedict Mathurin scored 22 points for Los Angeles and Darius Garland had 21, hitting five 3-pointers.

Anthony Edwards led Minnesota with 36 points and Naz Reid had 18.

Minnesota dropped to sixth in the tight Western Conference, but only a half-game behind the third-place Lakers. The Timberwolves have lost three in a row after winning five straight. They lost to the Lakers on Tuesday night to open four-game trip.

17 games left to go pic.twitter.com/1RhLXzN8QS
— LA Clippers (@LAClippers) March 12, 2026

Bane leads surging Magic past Cavs

Desmond Bane made a 3-pointer and two free throws in the final 17.4 seconds to cap a 35-point night and help the Orlando Magic hold off the Cleveland Cavaliers 128-122 for their fifth straight victory.

Paolo Banchero added 25 points, eight rebounds and seven assists for the Magic. Tristan da Silva scored nine of his 23 points in the fourth quarter.

James Harden had 30 points and eight assists for Cleveland. Donovan Mitchell added 25 points, hitting a 3-pointer that brought the Cavaliers within two after Orlando led by 13 midway through the fourth quarter.

Bane countered with a 3-pointer as he was falling out of bounds with 17.4 seconds left, then added two free throws with eight seconds remaining.

Three 3-pointers by Keon Ellis, who finished with 20 points, keyed the late comeback of the Cavaliers.

Evan Mobley had 18 points and 13 rebounds for Cleveland, which has lost five of nine after winning seven straight.

Desmond Bane vs. CLE:

35 PTS
6 REB
6 AST
12-19 FG@Kia pic.twitter.com/5eWnR1R5Mw
— Orlando Magic (@OrlandoMagic) March 12, 2026

Jokic powers Nuggets in rout

Nikola Jokic had 16 points, 13 assists and 12 rebounds for his 25th triple-double of the season, and the Denver Nuggets beat the Houston Rockets 129-93 in a Western Conference showdown.

Jamal Murray scored 30 points for Denver, which holds the tiebreaker over the Rockets after winning the season series 3-1. The Nuggets moved within a half-game of Houston in the bunched-up Western Conference standings.

It was the first time since mid-November Denver has won with its opening-night lineup together. The Nuggets had lost six of 10 out of the All-Star break as head coach David Adelman practised caution with workloads as players return to the lineup.

Jokic completed his 187th career triple-double with his 10th rebound with 4:14 left in the third. It is the 15th time this season he has secured a triple-double before the fourth quarter.

The Rockets, who finished 4 of 33 from behind the arc, were outscored 40-22 in the third. Kevin Durant finished with just 11 points on 5-of-8 shooting, his fewest field goal attempts this season.