Clippers use big third quarter to defeat the Grizzlies as Bogdan Bogdanovic debuts

What started as a back-and-forth battle between the Clippers, who have one of the NBA’s best defenses, and the Memphis Grizzlies, who have the league’s top offense, was decided by the Clippers’ 36-point third quarter, which led them to a 128-114 victory Wednesday night at the Intuit Dome.

The Clippers, led by Kawhi Leonard and James Harden, saw their lead surge to as many as 23 points in the third, too great for the Grizzlies, who were playing without Ja Morant.

Leonard played a season-high 34 minutes, scoring 25 points with five rebounds and four assists. Harden added a near triple-double, scoring 18 points with 10 assists and eight rebounds.

A three-pointer in the third quarter gave Harden his 26,974th point, moving him into sole possession of 13th on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, surpassing Hakeem Olajuwon.

Norman Powell steals the ball from Luke Kennard in the second half.

(Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

While the Grizzlies entered the game boasting the highest-scoring offense in the league (123.5 ppg), they were without their superstar point guard, forcing them to look elsewhere for offense. The two-time All-Star, who averages 20.7 points, 7.4 assists, and 4.3 rebounds, was ruled out just before tipoff because of knee soreness.

This absence proved to be the Grizzlies’ downfall, as the Clippers — ranked third in points given up per game (107.8) and steals (9.4) — took advantage of bad matchups and stifled Memphis’ offense.

One of the league’s top defensive teams, the Clippers had 17 steals, forced 21 turnovers and scored 41 points off them, all of which played a significant role in keeping the Grizzlies below their season average.

Before the game, Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said he would insert guard Kris Dunn into the starting lineup to alleviate the pressure the Grizzlies presented on offense. This move was a boost for the Clippers, with Dunn — who replaced Derrick Jones Jr. — delivering his largest scoring output of the season.

Dunn finished with 14 points and set a season high from beyond the arc, making all four of his three-point shots.

He played an all-around productive game, adding five assists, five steals and three rebounds.

Bogdan Bogdanovic made his Clippers debut after arriving from the Atlanta Hawks at the trade deadline. The three-point specialist nailed his first three-point attempt to much fanfare.

However, the Serbian played only 18 minutes, scoring seven points.

Norman Powell added 18 points, while Ivica Zubac contributed a double-double with 13 rebounds and 12 points .

The Clippers (30-23) are now 2½ games behind the Lakers in the Pacific Division with one game remaining before the All-Star break. They will face the Jazz in Utah on Thursday night.

Ben Simmons is expected to make his debut. He sat out for reconditioning and missed the first game of the Clippers’ back-to-back set after signing with them this week, the 28-year-old looking forward to playing backup point guard for his new team.