The Los Angeles Clippers suffered a tough 123-111 loss against the New York Knicks Wednesday night after leading throughout the first half. 

Los Angeles led by five points going into the half, but a massive third quarter response by New York quickly turned the tables. The Knicks jumped ahead with a 39 point third quarter and ultimately won the second half with a 17 point differential to ultimately take the game. 

Jalen Brunson led the way for the Knicks with 26 points, but the 20 point performance and defensive presence of Karl-Anthony Towns was the main difference maker for the Knicks. 

In addition to his 20 points, Towns recorded 11 rebounds and seven assists to help power the Knicks forward. Towns earned a major chunk of his points from the charity, shooting 8-10 of his free throws. His ability to draw fouls dramatically switched the pace of the game in the Knicks' favor, but it also frustrated the Clippers trying to defend him.

"It's very hard. We got called for any contact. So, whatever," Ivica Zubac said of the fouls that Towns drew (via Law Murray of The Athletic).

Zubac continued, "He's a good player. It was a mismatch we put on him. We can try, but he's going to get to the line."

Zubac was the primary defender assigned to Towns, and soon enough he had racked up five personal fouls and was forced to the bench to avoid fouling out of the game entirely. With Zubac out, the Clippers found themselves severely mismatched against the surging Knicks and soon the game flipped toward New York's favor. 

Zubac has been getting back into a rhythm with the Clippers after making his return from a Grade 2 ankle sprain, playing  30 minutes each game and regularly contributing on the court. He scored 22 points in Wednesday's game.

The Knicks' surge of offense was met with a lack of shot-making by the Clippers. While Los Angeles had come out of the gate strong in the first half, they struggled to get shots up or make the ones they did take while the Knicks kept marching ahead.

 "We just couldn't score at certain times and they made shots. That's the game right there," James Harden said.

Despite the loss, the Clippers have ben on a roll lately, especially compared to the way that their year began. While the wins have started to add up for Los Angeles, the way that Kawhi Leonard has played lately is another major bright spot. Leonard scored a team-leading 25 points and has scored 27.8 points in his last five games.

The loss against the Knicks may have been a setback, but things have been looking up for Los Angeles.