Kawhi Leonard scores 23 points and Clippers rally from 17-point deficit to beat Warriors 114-101

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Kawhi Leonard had 23 points, eight rebounds and four assists, and the Los Angeles Clippers erased a 17-point deficit to beat the short-handed Golden State Warriors 114-101 on Monday night.

Darius Garland scored 12 points in his Clippers debut, coming off the bench to play nearly 23 minutes in his first game since being acquired from Cleveland at the trade deadline last month in a deal that sent James Harden to the Cavaliers.

Garland had been nursing a toe injury, then he went down with 1:26 left in the second quarter after a collision with Moses Moody when they both went for a loose ball and Moody’s right shoulder appeared to get Garland in the face. Both players were shaken but stayed in the game.

Garland’s 3-pointer with 3:09 left in the third pulled the Clippers within 75-68, then Kris Dunn had a steal and layup to make it a five-point game. Los Angeles was within 79-77 going into the final 12 minutes.

Dunn finished with 16 points, seven rebounds and seven assists for the Clippers, who shot just 9 for 31 from 3-point range. Los Angeles used a 9-4 spurt to start the fourth quarter and go ahead 88-81.

Brandin Podziemski scored 22 points for the Warriors with Stephen Curry sidelined for an 11th straight game with a right knee injury, big man Kristaps Porzingis out for his fifth consecutive contest because of an illness coach Steve Kerr called “mysterious.” Rookie Will Richard was in a walking boot for his sprained right ankle he hurt in Saturday’s blowout home loss to the Lakers.

Al Horford added 17 points for Golden State, which has lost five of seven and nine of 14. Podziemski hit eight of his initial 12 shots with three 3-pointers for his second career 20-point half, but he went 1 for 6 for two points after the break.

Clippers: Host Indiana on Wednesday.

Warriors: At Houston on Thursday to begin a three-game trip.

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Golden State Warriors guard Moses Moody (4) shoots against Los Angeles Clippers center Brook Lopez (11) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in San Francisco, Monday, March 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Los Angeles Clippers center Yanic Konan Niederhäuser, foreground, controls the ball against Golden State Warriors center Al Horford during the first half of an NBA basketball game in San Francisco, Monday, March 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Golden State Warriors guard Nate Williams (19) loses the ball while being defended by Los Angeles Clippers guard Bennedict Mathurin (9) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in San Francisco, Monday, March 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Los Angeles Clippers guard Kris Dunn, right, passes the ball while being defended by Golden State Warriors guard De'Anthony Melton, left, and guard Moses Moody (4) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in San Francisco, Monday, March 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Golden State Warriors guard De'Anthony Melton, left, grabs a rebound against Los Angeles Clippers forward Derrick Jones Jr. (5) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in San Francisco, Monday, March 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

Golden State Warriors guard Brandin Podziemski, top, hangs onto the rim over Los Angeles Clippers guard Bennedict Mathurin after dunking during the first half of an NBA basketball game in San Francisco, Monday, March 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

As the war in the Middle East intensifies, U.S. President Donald Trump said that the U.S. has “the capability to go far longer" than its projected four-to-five-week time frame for its military operations against Iran.

Across Tehran, the sound of explosions rang out through the night and into the early morning hours Tuesday, as the U.S. and Israel have continued to pound Iran since killing its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday.

Tehran and its allies have hit back against Israel, neighboring Gulf states, and targets critical to the world’s production of oil and natural gas.

The intensity of the attacks and the lack of any apparent exit plan set the stage for a prolonged conflict with far-reaching consequences. Israel and the U.S. have given conflicting answers about what exactly the war’s objectives are or what the endgame might be.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu late Monday defended the decision to go to war, contending in an interview on Fox News Channel’s "Hannity" that Iran was rebuilding “new sites, new places” that would make “their ballistic missile program and their atomic bomb program immune within months,” without providing evidence.

Satellite photos analyzed by The Associated Press showed limited activity at two nuclear sites in Iran before the war, with analysts saying it was likely Tehran was trying to assess damage from American strikes in June and possibly salvage what remained there.

Here is the latest:

The U.S. State Department on Tuesday ordered the evacuation of non-emergency personnel and family in Bahrain and Jordan.

The State Department announcement online said the decision came “due to safety risks.” The department has urged Americans across the Mideast to leave over the ongoing war with Iran.

The U.S. Embassy in Saudi Arabia acknowledged coming under attack from Iranian drones Tuesday and urged Americans to avoid the diplomatic post for the time being.

The Saudi Defense Ministry earlier Tuesday said the embassy was attacked by two drones.

Across Iran’s capital, the sound of explosions rang out throughout the night into the early morning hours.

Witnesses described hearing aircraft overhead as well.

It wasn’t immediately clear what had been hit.

Iranian state television early Tuesday read a statement from the country’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, saying that it launched a missile and drone attack targeting an air base in Bahrain.

Israeli airstrikes hit the Lebanese capital Tuesday morning.

The Israeli military said it was targeting “Hezbollah command centers and weapons storage facilities in Beirut.”

Hezbollah also said it launched drones targeting an Israeli air base.

The Israeli military said it downed two drones.

Tokyo has told Japanese shipowners to have their ships stay away from the Persian Gulf to ensure the safety of their crew members.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara told reporters Tuesday that the Transport Ministry has notified the Japanese Shipowners’ Association to do the utmost to protect crews on board the ships in the region.

Kihara said those already in the Gulf are urged to lie at anchor where it is safe to do so.

On Monday, Japan’s Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi met with Iranian ambassador to Japan Peiman Seadat and conveyed Japan’s consistent stance that Iran must stop attacks on neighboring countries and other actions destabilizing the region.

Motegi also noted the importance of ensuring safety in the Strait of Hormuz, which is key to Japan’s energy security.

Iran’s top diplomat early Tuesday sought to turn the tables on the United States, describing it as entering “a war of choice on behalf of Israel.”

After Trump urged Iranians to take over their government, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi made the same call to Americans.

“Shedding of both American and Iranian blood is thus on Israel Firsters,” Araghchi wrote on X. “American people deserve better and should take back their country.”

This partially redacted image from video provided by U.S. Central Command shows a complex of structures in Iran being struck by missiles fired by U.S. forces on Sunday, March 1, 2026. (U.S. Central Command via AP)

President Donald Trump walks past Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as he exist the East Room of the White House following the Medal of Honor ceremony, Monday, March 2, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Rescue workers carry a dead body in a plastic bag from a building that was hit by Israeli strike, in Jnah neighborhood, south of Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, March 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

A poster of the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed during the ongoing joint U.S.-Israeli military campaign, and the late Iranian Revolutionary founder Ayatollah Khomeini, right, lays on a motorcycle amid debris left by a strike in Tehran, Iran, Monday, March 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Plumes of smoke from two simultaneous strikes rise over Tehran, Iran, Monday, March 2, 2026. (AP Photo/Mohsen Ganji)