LOS ANGELES – Paul George fouled out of the Los Angeles Clippers' matchup against the New York Knicks with a little over seven minutes remaining. The Clippers' 11-point lead, however, was quickly trimmed to just three. Already down Kawhi Leonard, LA turned to Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell to guide them to victory, 135-132.

Williams and Harrell combined to score 11 of the final 14 points, with the other three coming on a JaMychal Green 3-pointer assisted by Williams. Harrell (34 points), Williams (32 points), and George (32 points) made franchise history by becoming the first trio to score at least 30 points in a single game together.

After the game, George praised the Clippers' bench duo for the spark they provide night-in and night-out.

“I got into a groove, we all made shots, and we saw the tandem of Lou and Trez at their best,” said George. “I thought the second quarter, they took over and they established their dominance and it bled all the way through the game and those same two are the guys that finished it for us and put us on their backs, won the game for us. I thought we were special all-around on offense.”

On the schedule, it was just another regular-season game in January, but Sunday's game felt like a must-win game following a porous performance against the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday. LA gave up 140 points, allowed 36 points in three of the four quarters, and looked downright awful on both ends.

Clippers forward Montrezl Harrell expressed some of his frustration in his postgame interview.

“[If] you come in and no matter what time the game is, no matter what's going on, you're just thinking you're gonna walk on the floor and beat another professional NBA basketball team, you're kidding yourself,” said Harrell. “It's just not gonna happen. Either we wake up and figure it out right now, or we're just gonna have a full up-and-down season for the whole year.”

To be clear, Harrell comments shouldn't be perceived as a jab at his teammates or an attempt to create a rift like a lot of people assumed. The Clippers are a good team, but they have a ways to go before they can be great. They've only played one game fully healthy, having to deal with some kind of injury or injury management in the other 37. They've had to put out 16 different starting lineups this season, most in the Western Conference, due to guys coming in and out.

When making comments like Harrell did, the line, ‘don't just talk about it, be about it,' immediately comes to mind. Well, 20 hours after making those remarks, Harrell absolutely was ‘about it.' Harrell's 34 points, which tied his career high in scoring, came on 13-of-21 shooting from the field and 8-of-12 from the free-throw line.

“Again, what makes this team so great and unique is I can be off the floor,” continued Paul George. “Kawhi can be off the floor, and we still got two guys who can close games. I mean, I trusted them, I think everybody trusted those two and it was almost like they locked in down that stretch and they made every big play and basket that we need.”

Lou Williams had just one point in the first 16 minutes of the game before deciding to take over. He then scored nin straight points in 52 seconds on three consecutive 3-pointers. He finished with 18 points on 5-of-6 from beyond the arc in the second quarter alone. Thanks to Lou, the Clippers turned a 16-point deficit into an 11-point lead just prior to the halftime buzzer.

“I just think our mentality [changed],” says Williams. “I think we just decided we weren’t gonna lose today. Stepped up our energy, our defensive communication, and just started playing.”

Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell set the NBA record for most points by a bench duo last season with 36.6 combined points per game. The duo is even better this season, averaging 39 points per game off the bench.

“It’s cool,” Williams said about making franchise history with George and Harrell. “It was necessary, so in retrospect, now that the game’s over, it’s pretty cool. I don’t know how much more history I can make with Trez. We just keep going.”

It's only one game, but Paul George would be satisfied if offensive nights like Sunday's happen more often.

“It feels good. I’ve been part of some cool stats: 40 [points] with Kawhi, two players with 40. Now a trio of 30s, it feels good. It’s a great accomplishment, a great achievement. Let’s get more nights like it.”

The Clippers will now enjoy four days off from Monday to Thursday before taking on the Golden State Warriors at home on Friday night.