A Clippers fan holds up an “LA Strong” shirt during the first half of a game against the Miami Heat on Monday night at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard dribbles against Miami Heat guard Jaime Jaquez Jr. (11) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Miami Heat forward Kevin Love (42) looks to shoot as Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard, left, and Heat guard Terry Rozier (2) look on during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard shoots against Miami Heat guard Jaime Jaquez Jr. (11) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) A Clippers fan holds up his “LA Strong” shirt during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier (2) shoots against Clippers guard Norman Powell (24) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard James Harden gets to the basket for a layup in front of Miami Heat forward Haywood Highsmith during the first half on Monday night at Crypto.com Arena. Harden had 26 points and 11 assists in a 109-98 win. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Miami Heat forward Kevin Love (42) dribbles against Clippers guard James Harden, left, during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro, right, dribbles against Clippers guard Kris Dunn (8) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers center Mo Bamba, right, gestures after a 3-point basket as Miami Heat center Kel’el Ware (7) looks on during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro (14) looks to shoot against Clippers guard Kris Dunn (8) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro (14) dribbles against Clippers guard Amir Coffey, left, during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier (2) looks to pass the ball against Clippers center Mo Bamba, left, as Clippers forward Nicolas Batum (33) watches during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard James Harden (1) dribbles against Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro (14) during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard Norman Powell (24) shoots against Miami Heat forward Nikola Jovic (5) during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard Norman Powell (24) gestures as fans cheer and Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra looks on after Powell scored a 3-point basket during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra, right, gestures as he speaks with a referee during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Clippers, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard James Harden (1) drives against Miami Heat forward Haywood Highsmith (24) as center Kel’el Ware (7), and forward Duncan Robinson (55) watch during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard James Harden (1) reacts towards the crowd after scoring a basket against the Miami Heat during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) A Clippers fan wearing a fire rescue shirt gestures during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard James Harden (1) gestures after scoring a basket against the Miami Heat during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers wearing “LA Strong” shirts cheer during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard Norman Powell (24) defends against Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro (14) during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers center Ivica Zubac (40) shoots against Miami Heat center Kel’el Ware (7) as guard Tyler Herro, left, and forward Haywood Highsmith, right, watch during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard James Harden (1) dribbles after center Ivica Zubac sets a screen against Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier (2) during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro gestures after a play during the second half of a game against the Clippers, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard Norman Powell (24) shoots as forward Nikola Jovic (5) watches during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard Amir Coffey (7) defends against Miami Heat forward Nikola Jovic (5) during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (2) shoots against Miami Heat guard Jaime Jaquez Jr. (11) during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard James Harden drives as Miami Heat center Kel’el Ware, left, and guard Jaime Jaquez Jr., right, defend during the second half on Monday night at Crypto.com Arena. Harden had 26 points and 11 assists in a 109-98 win. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard Kevin Porter Jr. gestures during the second half of an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard James Harden, right, reacts while warming up with assistant coach Shaun Fein, left, before an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard Amir Coffey wears an “LA Strong” shirt before an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard James Harden reacts before an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) A Clippers fan poses in an “LA Strong” shirt before a game against the Miami Heat, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers guard James Harden looks on before an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Clippers players stand during a moment of silence for victims of the ongoing California wildfires before an NBA basketball game against the Miami Heat, Monday, Jan. 13, 2025, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Show Caption1 of 37A Clippers fan holds up an “LA Strong” shirt during the first half of a game against the Miami Heat on Monday night at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood. (AP Photo/Jessie Alcheh) Expand INGLEWOOD — With fires still burning around Los Angeles, the Clippers got back to work, putting distractions aside and focusing on the one thing the team could control: playing basketball. Yet, thoughts of the widespread devastation and loss of lives lingered Monday night at Intuit Dome. With the players standing on the sideline wearing “LA Strong” warm-up shirts, public address announcer Eric Smith gave a moving speech before Monday’s tipoff about the devastating wildfires, thanking the first responders and finishing with “Today, we all stand together. One team, one Los Angeles.” Then it was time to play. The Clippers didn’t appear ready, though, needing a solid 24 minutes to find their rhythm against the Miami Heat zone. But once they got going, the Clippers ran over the Heat, 109-98, in front of an expectedly sparse Intuit Dome crowd. “We’re going to play hard,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said before the game. “They (the Heat) are going to compete, and we got to match their intensity for 48 minutes. Not for 24, not for 28 minutes. For 48 minutes. We got to match their intensity.” The Clippers finally met their match in the second half, spurred by star James Harden’s outside shooting. In the early going, the Clippers, who had not played since last Wednesday, appeared out-of-sync on offense and just off on defense. But they found a groove late in the third quarter. Harden, who is shooting 33.9% from 3-point range, buried a trio from behind the arc and added a layup to tie the score at 59-all, and Norman Powell, the team’s leading scorer, added a 3-pointer to give the Clippers a 70-63 lead with 2:47 left in third. The Clippers outscored Miami 36-20 in the third to open a 79-68 lead. They made six 3-pointers in the period – the three by Harden and three by Powell. “I think it was a combination of both shots being made and (solving the zone),” Lue said. “I thought James really got going to help us, propel us to the win. But I thought we figured out the zone and how we wanted to attack it. “We got some good shots in that first half, but we still were kind of slow and kind of stagnant to getting them and I thought in that second half we really did a good job with just locking into how we wanted to execute against that zone. We were able to really get some good shots and knock down the shots as well.” The Clippers (21-17) didn’t stop there. They stretched their cushion to 16 points with 10:20 left and led by as many as 19 in the final quarter to take down the Heat (20-18) for their second victory in the past six games. Powell led the Clippers with 29 points and six rebounds, while Harden finished with 26 points, five rebounds and 11 assists. Center Ivica Zubac posted his 25th double-double of the season with 21 points and 20 rebounds. It was his second career game with at least 20 points and 20 rebounds. The Heat, playing without All-Stars Bam Adebayo (lower back) and Jimmy Butler (suspended), were led by Tyler Herro’s 32 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. The home game was the kind of diversion the players needed after the past seven days, in which some players saw the flames come close to their homes. Kawhi Leonard’s family had to evacuate their Pacific Palisades home last week. The Clippers also had their game Saturday night against the Charlotte Hornets postponed because of the fires. “I hope (the game) can bring some smiles to some faces, get their thoughts off the devastating fires right now,” Lue said. A double-digit victory after consecutive losses can do that. “It was good finally to get out there, get in front of our fans (and) just kind of forget about it for 48 minutes,” Zubac said. “To go out there and play the game we love and get our mind off it.” Harden said the devastation left by the fires is “really sad man. It’s like, I don’t know how to explain it, but so many people are just impacted by this tragedy for real. You know what I mean?” Related Articles Clippers | Clippers expected to resume play Monday against Miami Clippers | NBA postpones Saturday’s Lakers-Spurs, Clippers-Hornets games due to fires Clippers | Clippers-Hornets game is on for now, but that could change Clippers | Russell Westbrook, Nuggets rout Clippers with both teams missing stars Clippers | Reports: Clippers star Kawhi Leonard leaves team to join evacuated family in L.A. Leonard, playing in his third game this season, turned in another un-Kawhi-like performance with six points on 3-of-9 shooting and five rebounds and one assist. The two-time NBA Finals MVP, who missed the first 34 games of the season because of knee issues, remains on a minutes restriction and played 21 minutes, equaling his time of his previous start. “I’m trying to do my job to help the team win,” Leonard said. “That’s all I do. And yeah, I feel good. As long as I’m feeling good on the court, I’m able to move quickly, get to my spots. That’s all I’m looking for.” Lue said the six-time All-Star has “looked better in practice than in games”, stressing the Leonard is still trying to feel his way through games. “I think that’s what he’s been doing the last couple of games. So, he’s got to just get to a point where he trusts, where he can go all out without having to think about it. And it’s going to take a little time.” NOTES The Clippers were among the 12 L.A. area pro sports teams that announced Monday they will contribute more than $8 million combined for local relief efforts. … The Clippers covered every seat at Intuit Dome with giveaway white towels featuring the words “LA Strong” and a blue image of the state of California.