The memory of Los Angeles All-Star forward Kawhi Leonard scoring at his leisure during a late-December matchup remained front and center for the Houston Rockets as they prepared for the first game of a home back-to-back against the visiting Clippers on Tuesday.

Leonard scored 41 points in that 20-point victory on Dec. 23, the first of his career-high four 40-point games this season. Leonard entered play Tuesday averaging 30.2 points per game this month, and he held the Rockets’ undivided attention with another contest between the teams set for Wednesday.

The Rockets responded by hounding Leonard throughout their 102-95 win on Tuesday, limiting him to 24 points on 7-for-19 shooting. Tari Eason drew the primary defensive assignment on Leonard, but the Rockets sent several bodies his way. Amen Thompson and Dorian Finney-Smith also chipped in with the occasional double-team to slow the assault.

“He’s on a hot streak right now,” Rockets coach Ime Udoka said of Leonard, who ranks eighth in the NBA with a career-best average of 27.9 points per game. “The ball is in his hands more, and they’re surrounding him with good pieces. For us, we like our length and size on the wings defensively, and we’ve got a lot of bodies we can throw at him. But you want to keep him off-balance.

“I’ve coached Kawhi for years (as an assistant with the San Antonio Spurs), and I’ve seen some things I can possibly do to go after him.”

The Clippers remade their roster at the trade deadline, shipping out James Harden and Ivica Zubac and welcoming Darius Garland, Bennedict Mathurin and Isaiah Jackson.

Garland (toe) has yet to play for the Clippers. Mathurin scored nine points in 26 minutes in his Los Angeles debut on Tuesday. Jackson also appeared for the Clippers for the first time, netting five points in five minutes.

Brook Lopez has replaced center Zubac in the starting lineup, and with Harden in Cleveland, Leonard will get additional opportunities as the unquestioned primary option on offense.

Rockets star Kevin Durant acknowledged that his team’s task against the Clippers was eased by Harden’s departure.

“I just think our physicality ramped up,” Durant said. “I mean, not having James Harden out there helps, too, as somebody else who can create offense and get everybody else involved. But yeah, we knew this team, Kawhi’s playing great basketball, and he’s willing these guys to up their game.”

The Clippers shot just 40.9% from the floor and missed 22 of 30 3-point attempts. John Collins (17 points) was the only double-digit scorer aside from Leonard for Los Angeles, which has ample experience of teams attempting to stifle Leonard. The trick is converting scoring opportunities when they are presented.

“They put two on the ball,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said. “I don’t think we capitalized well enough when they double-teamed Kawhi. We didn’t do a good job with our spacing and making the right play and making the right pass. (Wednesday), we’ll be ready.

“We understand our space, and we understand how to get to our spots. And teams are going to double-team Kawhi, so we know exactly what should be on the floor, so we just can’t panic. Take our time, make the right pass, make the right read, and we’ll be fine.”

–Field Level Media

Trade-deadline acquisition James Harden came through in the clutch during his first two games with the Cavaliers, rallying Cleveland to road victories over the Sacramento Kings and Denver Nuggets.

“The Beard” and the red-hot Cavaliers will look to continue their winning ways on Wednesday when they host the Washington Wizards. Cleveland has won four straight games, nine of its past 10 and is 11-2 since Jan. 14.

Harden buried the tying 3-pointer with 32 seconds left on Monday in Denver, and he finished with 22 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists in Cleveland’s 119-117 triumph over the Nuggets. Donovan Mitchell made a pair of free throws with 0.9 ticks left to provide the margin of victory.

Mitchell had 32 points and 10 assists while Jarrett Allen continued his surge with 22 points and 13 rebounds as the Cavaliers wrapped up a 4-1 trip against Western Conference foes.

“We’re just hooping on vibes,” said Mitchell, who attended the Super Bowl with his fiancee, singer Coco Jones, who performed in the pregame on Sunday at Santa Clara, Calif. “That’s a testament to who we have on the team right now. We just figured it out.”

The starting backcourt of Harden and Mitchell combined for 58 points and 12 assists in its debut Saturday, a 132-126 Cavaliers win over the Kings. Allen made 11 of 12 shots and had 29 points and 10 rebounds in that contest, helping Cleveland score 75 points in the second half.

Mitchell said it only took one half of one game to develop chemistry with Harden, who was traded by the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for fellow point guard Darius Garland on Feb. 4.

“No practices, a couple of film sessions, that’s the way it’s supposed to happen,” Harden said. “We find a way to just get it done.

“Donovan could go out there and literally average 35 points per game, but his willingness to pass and be unselfish is a testament to him as a basketball player.”

The Cavaliers have moved into fourth place in the East, while Washington is mired in 14th following a 132-101 loss to the visiting Miami Heat on Sunday. The Wizards have dropped 13 of their past 17 games, including the past two in a row.

Second-year center Alex Sarr had 12 points, 12 rebounds and five assists after missing one game with an ankle injury, but Washington only dressed 10 players.

“You flush the experience and you focus on the next one,” Wizards point guard Bub Carrington said. “We couldn’t get rebounds, we missed a couple of shots and we turned the ball over. The game changed just like that.”

Carrington, who had 13 points and five assists against Miami, has provided consistent effort and performance. His averages of 10.2 points and 4.6 assists are virtually identical to last season, when he made the All-Rookie second team.

“He’s growing daily and we like how he’s playing,” Wizards coach Brian Keefe said. “He sets a good standard for us, bringing a level of intensity and joy for the game we love.”

Recent trade pickup Anthony Davis (finger) may or may not play for Washington this season, but former All-Star Trae Young (knee, quadriceps) is scheduled to be examined next week and could suit up for the initial time in late February.

The Wizards have had no success against Cleveland over the past four years, losing 14 straight — seven at home and seven on the road. They have given up 278 points in two games against the Cavaliers this season.

–Field Level Media

The remedy is simple for the Tennessee men’s basketball team: start making more layups.

An abundance of missed shots at the rim cost the Volunteers a Southeastern Conference game Saturday at Kentucky, a contest that Tennessee led by 14 points at halftime. The 74-71 loss also cost them a spot in the Top 25 rankings.

When the Volunteers (16-7, 6-4 SEC) oppose Mississippi State (11-12, 3-7) on Wednesday night in Starkville, Miss., they will attempt to get back on track.

“These guys will bounce back,” Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said. “They have too much pride. They work too hard. Their work ethic is too good.

“We have not reached the ceiling with this team, and that’s a good thing right now.”

Tennessee’s shortcomings on finishing at the rim have been an issue throughout the season. The Volunteers’ inability to convert Saturday — Tennessee missed four of its seven layup attempts — led to Tennessee’s four-game winning streak ending.

Freshman sensation Nate Ament has been doing his part for the Volunteers. He scored 28 points in a victory over Ole Miss last week and poured in 29 against Kentucky.

In addition to missed layups, Ament lamented his team going just 17 of 25 (68%) at the free-throw line.

“We’ve got to make shots at the rim and free throws, and we’ve got to be mentally tougher,” he said.

Mississippi State will enter the game coming off an 88-68 loss to then-No. 21 Arkansas on Saturday. The Bulldogs allowed a 20-2 run early in the first half and never recovered. Mississippi State trailed by 16 after that sequence and never got closer than 13 points in the second half.

Against Tennessee, the Bulldogs will need to shore up some of their defensive deficiencies.

“Point-of-attack defense,” Mississippi State coach Chris Jans said, referring to where the team has struggled. “We are not doing a good enough job on a consistent basis with old-fashioned guarding the basketball.

“Too many times the offenses are getting the ball where they want to go. (Opponents) are getting us in rotation where this defense is not built to be in rotation. And we’re not providing the resistance needed to keep offenses from where they are trying to get.”

Josh Hubbard, the Bulldogs’ leading scorer at 20.6 points per game, led the team with 16 against the Razorbacks.

–Field Level Media