INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Kawhi Leonard scored 21 of his 28 points in the first half as the Los Angeles Clippers built a 38-point lead in the second quarter and beat the Brooklyn Nets 126-89 on Sunday.
James Harden scored 19 points, John Collins added 18, and Jordan Miller had 16. Ivica Zubac finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds as the Clippers, who were coming off a victory over the Lakers on Thursday, won for the eighth time in nine games.
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Los Angeles Clippers center Ivica Zubac, center, is defended by Brooklyn Nets center Nic Claxton, left, and forward Michael Porter Jr. during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Brooklyn Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. (17) is fouled by Los Angeles Clippers forward/center John Collins during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Brooklyn Nets guard/forward Terance Mann (14) pressures Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (2) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Los Angeles Clippers guard James Harden, right, drives past Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic during the second half of an NBA basketball game Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (2) is defended by Brooklyn Nets forward Tyrese Martin (13) and forward Ziaire Williams (1) during the second half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Danny Wolf scored 14 points and Egor Demin had 12 for the Nets, who shot 28% in the first half and 34% (29 for 86) overall, including 21% (9 for 43) from 3-point range. Brooklyn lost its fourth straight and has dropped 10 of its last 11 games and 13 of 15.
The Nets were coming off a double-overtime loss on Friday to the Boston Celtics, who are in second place in the Eastern Conference. Two days earlier, Brooklyn was beaten 120-66 by the New York Knicks.
The Clippers charged to a 24-point lead in the first quarter and extended their advantage to 38 points in the second, carrying a 68-37 lead into the break. Los Angeles maintained its lopsided advantage in the third quarter and was ahead 96-66 headed into the fourth.
It was another lopsided win for the Clippers over the Nets in Los Angeles. When the teams met in LA on Jan. 15, 2025, the Clippers won 126-67, and the 59-point margin of victory is the only 50-point win for the Clippers.
Nets: At the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday in the second game of a five-game trip.
Clippers: At the Utah Jazz on Tuesday.
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA
Los Angeles Clippers center Ivica Zubac, center, is defended by Brooklyn Nets center Nic Claxton, left, and forward Michael Porter Jr. during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Brooklyn Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. (17) is fouled by Los Angeles Clippers forward/center John Collins during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Brooklyn Nets guard/forward Terance Mann (14) pressures Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (2) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Los Angeles Clippers guard James Harden, right, drives past Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic during the second half of an NBA basketball game Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Los Angeles Clippers forward Kawhi Leonard (2) is defended by Brooklyn Nets forward Tyrese Martin (13) and forward Ziaire Williams (1) during the second half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stock indexes are ticking higher Monday, while other markets make louder moves, including another record-breaking rush for the price of gold.
The S&P 500 rose 0.6% in mixed trading to win back its losses from last week’s dip. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 170 points, or 0.3%, as of 11:30 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.6% higher.
Baker Hughes helped lead the way and rose 3% after delivering a stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. The energy technology company said it’s benefiting from strong momentum in demand for liquefied natural gas, among other things.
CoreWeave jumped 9.7% after Nvidia said it invested $2 billion in the stock and will help accelerate the buildout of CoreWeave’s artificial-intelligence factories, which use Nvidia chips, by 2030 to advance AI adoption. Nvidia slipped 0.5%.
USA Rare Earth leaped 11.4% after saying the U.S. government agreed to invest $277 million to help the company produce heavy rare earths, minerals and magnets. The Trump administration also agreed to a proposed $1.3 billion loan, while the company separately raised $1.5 billion through private investors.
Much of the rest of Wall Street was relatively quiet. That included mixed performances for airlines, which had to cancel thousands of flights due to the winter storm that swept much of the United States over the weekend. United Airlines lost 0.9%, while Southwest Airlines climbed 0.5%.
The action was stronger in the gold market, where the metal’s price rallied another 2.2% and briefly topped $5,100 per ounce to set another record. Silver surged even more, nearly 12%.
Prices for precious metals have been soaring as investors look for safer places to keep their money amid threats of tariffs, still-high inflation, political strife and mountains of debt for governments worldwide.
One of the latest worries piled atop the swelling list was President Donald Trump's threat to impose a 100% tariff on goods from Canada if it signs a free trade deal with China.
The U.S. dollar’s value also continued its recent decline against peers. This time, it was the Japanese yen leaping sharply against the dollar amid expectations that officials in Japan and the United States may intervene in the market to prop up the Japanese currency’s value.
More swings could be ahead for financial markets in a week full of big tests.
The Federal Reserve will announce its latest move on interest rates on Wednesday. It’s been lowering its main interest rate and has indicated more cuts may be on the way in 2026 to help shore up the job market. But most economists expect it to hold steady on Wednesday, in part because inflation remains stubbornly above the Fed's 2% target.
Several of Wall Street’s most influential stocks are also set to deliver their earnings reports this week. That includes Meta Platforms, Microsoft and Tesla on Wednesday and Apple on Thursday.
In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury eased to 4.21% from 4.24% late Friday.
In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed in Europe following sharper swings in Asia. Japan’s Nikkei 225 dropped 1.8% for one of the world’s bigger moves. A stronger yen could hurt Japanese exporters, and Toyota Motor fell 4.1%.
AP Business Writers Yuri Kageyama and Matt Ott contributed.
Trader William Lawrence works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Monday, Jan. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Specialist James Denaro works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Monday, Jan. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Trader Michael Capolino, left, and Specialist Thomas McArdle work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Monday, Jan. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Options traders Anthony Spina, second left, and Brian Garvey, right, work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Specialist Anthony Matesic, left, and trader Edward Curran work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Trader Daniel Krieger is framed by his computer monitors as he works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
A dealer walks past near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), right, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Jan. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Specialist Douglas Johnson works at his post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
A dealer walks past near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), right, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Jan. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer walks past near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), left, and the Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (KOSDAQ) at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Jan. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A dealer walks past near the screens showing the foreign exchange rates at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Jan. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
