Kawhi leaves the West red hot

Kawhi Leonard brushed perfection Thursday with 32 points and 13-of-15 shooting from the field in the Los Angeles Clippers’ win over the Oklahoma City Thunder in an NBA Western Conference that is in the balance, with only two games separating the fifth-place Los Angeles Clippers and the 12th-place Utah Jazz.

CLIPPERS 127 – THUNDER 105

Without Paul George, who will be out for about three weeks after a dangerous knee injury suffered 48 hours earlier against the Thunder, the Clippers sealed a big win led by a stellar Kawhi.

Leonard scored 32 points on 13-of-15 shooting from the field and three-of-four three-pointers.

The Angelenos strung together a 34-11 run between the end of the third quarter and the start of the fifth, extending it to 49-21 since trailing 65-68.

They are now fifth (39-35), while the Thunder are eighth (36-37).

NETS 114 – CAVALIERS 116

A three-pointer by Isaac Okoro with 0.7 seconds left capped the Cavaliers’ comeback win over the Nets on a night in which Donovan Mitchell scored 31 points and Evan Mobley added 26 points with 16 rebounds.

The Cavaliers scored six points in a disastrous last minute for the Nets, who suffered their fifth straight loss and fell to seventh place in the East, which would force them to go through the playoffs. Cleveland is fourth in the East and has eight wins in its last ten games.

A three-pointer by Isaac Okoro with 0.7 seconds left capped the Cavaliers’ comeback against the Nets on a night in which Donovan Mitchell scored 31 points and Evan Mobley added 26 points and 16 rebounds.

The Cavaliers scored six points in a disastrous last minute for the Nets, who suffered their fifth straight loss and dropped to seventh place in the East, which would force them to go through the playoffs. Cleveland is fourth in the East and has eight wins in its last ten games.