Kawhi Leonard's 39 points lead Clippers to a 105-102 win over Nuggets to even series 1-1

DENVER (AP) — Kawhi Leonard scored 39 points on 15-of-19 shooting and the Los Angeles Clippers evened their first-round playoff series against the Nuggets with a 105-102 win in Denver on Monday night.

“It feels like he didn't miss a shot,” James Harden said. “His shot-making ability is elite.”

Good thing, too, because his teammates were a combined 26 of 66 for a 39% clip.

“I made shots tonight,” Leonard said. “I just keep playing, try to stay in the zone no matter if I’m making or missing shots.”

And the fifth-seeded Clippers needed every bit of his brilliance to snatch the homecourt advantage in the series from the fourth-seeded Nuggets.

“This is what Kawhi lives for, getting healthy for the playoffs,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. “We know if we've got a healthy Kawhi, we can win any series.”

After appearing in just two playoff games over the last two years, the 33-year-old two-time Finals MVP is healthy and looking like his old self after missed the first 34 games of the season because of lingering issues with his surgically repaired knees.

“I'm just happy I'm able to move, you know, coming out of the game feeling well,” Leonard said. “I sat and watched these playoff games the last two years, so yeah, to be front-line out there, it feels good.”

Christian Braun was long on a 3-pointer with 6 seconds left, and Nikola Jokic, who recorded his 19th career playoff triple-double, grabbed the rebound but also missed a 3, with 1 second remaining.

The series shifts to Los Angeles for Game 3 Thursday night.

The Clippers, who lost Game 1 in overtime, haven’t lost back-to-back games since March 2-4, a stretch of 23 games, and they handed David Adelman his first loss in five games since replacing Michael Malone in a stunning move on the eve of the playoffs.

Jokic, just the third player to average a triple-double over a season, had 26 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists and Jamal Murray added 23 points for the Nuggets, who also got a bounce-back game from Michael Porter Jr. (15 points and 15 rebounds) after his 3-point performance in Game 1.

It wasn't enough against Leonard, who had 21 points at the break, including a pull-up 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer that broke a 52-all tie.

“To his credit, he was awesome tonight,” Adelman said.

“He just got to his spots,” Murray said. “And even when we're there he made some tough shots. He had a night. He got going and he was tough to stop.”

Leonard also had a key steal of a Jokic pass with 37 seconds remaining in the game, but Harden missed at the other end and Braun grabbed the defensive rebound with 11 seconds left.

The Nuggets committed 20 turnovers — the same number the Clippers had in Game 1 — and missed eight free throws. “That was a killer,” Adelman said.

Jokic had an uncharacteristic seven turnovers and missed 4 of 10 free throws.

Porter sprained his left shoulder in the closing minutes when he turned the ball over and hit the floor with Kris Dunn rolling over him in the scramble. Porter grimaced while getting dressed afterward and said he hoped that his shooting in L.A. won't be affected being that it was his left shoulder.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba

Los Angeles Clippers center Ivica Zubac, top right, looks to pass the ball to guard James Harden, bottom right, as Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr., left, defends in the first half of Game 2 of a first-round NBA playoff series Monday, April 21, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Los Angeles Clippers guard James Harden, center front, looks to pass the ball as Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon (32), forward Michael Porter Jr., center back, and center Nikola Jokic, right, defend in the first half of Game 2 of a first-round NBA playoff series Monday, April 21, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray, top, drives to the basket as Los Angeles Clippers guard James Harden, bottom, defends in the first half of Game 2 of a first-round NBA playoff series Monday, April 21, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard, right, looks to pass the ball as Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, left, and forward Michael Porter Jr., center, defend in the first half of Game 2 of a first-round NBA playoff series Monday, April 21, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Los Angeles Clippers center Ivica Zubac, right, drives past Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, left, in the first half of Game 2 of a first-round NBA playoff series Monday, April 21, 2025, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

LONDON (AP) — The U.K.'s home secretary on Wednesday urged the head of one of the country's leading police forces to resign following a report on how fans from Israeli soccer team Maccabi Tel Aviv were banned from a match against Premier League side Aston Villa in Birmingham last year.

Shabana Mahmood told lawmakers that the independent report found “a failure of leadership” on the part of West Midlands Police Chief Constable Craig Guildford, adding that he "no longer has my confidence.”

The ban came at a time of heightened concerns about antisemitism in Britain following a deadly attack on a Manchester synagogue and calls from Palestinians and their supporters for a sports boycott of Israel over the war with Hamas in Gaza.

The decision to ban Maccabi fans from the match with Aston Villa on Nov. 6 was widely criticized, including by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

West Midlands Police said at the time it had deemed the match to be high risk “based on current intelligence and previous incidents,” including violence and hate crimes that took place when Maccabi played Ajax in Amsterdam last season.

Guildford did not immediately comment on the report Wednesday but West Midlands Police said “mistakes were made” without mentioning its chief constable.

Mahmood said the report by the chief inspector of constabulary, Andy Cooke, found that West Midlands Police had overstated the threat posed by Maccabi fans while understating the potential risks to them, and “conducted little engagement with the Jewish community" before a decision was taken.

She said the report noted that "the force sought only the evidence to support their desired position to ban the fans.” The report did not find the police force was antisemitic.

Mahmood also noted a police reference at the time to a nonexistent match between Maccabi and Premier League side West Ham in 2023, which was deemed to be an “AI hallucination.” Guildford previously denied that AI was to blame for that error but apologized for it Wednesday ahead of the report’s publication.

Mahmood said she didn't have the power to fire Guildford as a result of a policy change by the previous Conservative government in 2011, but she was looking to reinstate that power to home secretaries. Currently, locally elected police and crime commissioners have that power.

Simon Foster, the West Midlands commissioner, acknowledged the “significant strength of feeling” surrounding the controversy and said he would seek further answers from Guildford at a public meeting on Jan. 27 of his accountability and governance board.

FILE - Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer, left, is reflected as Britain's Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood speaks to members of the Jewish community at the Community Security Trust (CST) in north west London, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2025. (Carlos Jasso, Pool Photo via AP, file)

FILE - Maccabi Tel Aviv's fan is escorted by police ahead of the Europa League soccer match between Aston Villa and Maccabi Tel Aviv in Birmingham, England, Thursday, Nov. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Darren Staples, file)