After losing their previous matchup against the Memphis Grizzlies, the Lakers get their revenge with a 128-123 win Wednesday night at home.
Anthony Davis reached a milestone in his career, reaching the 18,000 career points club. He ended the game with 19 points, 13 rebounds, three assists, and three blocks. LeBron James got his third triple-double in a row with 35 points to go with his 14 assists, 12 rebounds and a steal.
Rui Hachimura had a nice night, going three for four from behind the arc and scoring 19 points with seven rebounds and three assists. Austin Reaves scored 18 points with six assists. Dalton Knecht pitched in with his best game, scoring 19 points with three assists and two rebounds.
After the Grizzlies struck first, L.A. lit it up offensively, making four of their first five attempts from behind the arc. Rui made two of those 3-pointers. Austin even made had a beautiful bounce pass to AD for a layup in transition.
The Lakers’ lead ballooned to 11 as their offense clicked on all cylinders. Memphis wasn’t bad offensively, but they couldn’t keep L.A. from making its shots. Los Angeles shot 63.6% from behind the arc, with Rui and LeBron being a perfect two-for-two.
L.A. was up 38-26 at the end of the first.
Memphis started the second, scoring in the paint and slowly cutting the Laker lead down to nine.
Rui continued his excellent play from the first quarter with a nice drive and dunk. Los Angeles’ offense was still fiery hot and they extended their lead back to double digits on the shoulders of LeBron and Rui.
After knocking down a three in the first quarter, Dalton scored another five points, boosting his confidence. Despite the Lakers playing well offensively, the Grizzlies started making their shots, cutting the 13-point L.A. lead down to eight.
L.A. failed to close out the quarter well, which has become an unfortunate trend ten games into the season. Memphis kept chipping away, and by halftime, the Lakers were up by just one point.
The second half began with Austin missing two shots and Jaren Jackson Jr. putting Memphis on top by two. A pair of free throws by Zach Edey put the Grizzlies up four. The lead then went up to seven. L.A. had a horrible start, turning the ball over and missing shots.
LeBron converted on an and-1, cutting the deficit to four. The Lakers had lost whatever energy they had in the first half. At the six-minute mark, they were down eight.
Los Angeles’ defense was abysmal, leaving players open from behind the arc and easily gliding to the rim.
A sudden surge from Dalton, knocking down back-to-back threes, put L.A. within three. Rui then converted on two free throws to put L.A. to within one.
Unfortunately, the Grizzlies extended their lead to five with a pair of Marcus Smart free throws and a layup by former Laker Jay Huff to end the third.
The final frame began with Dalton drilling another three, his fifth of the game, making it a two-point contest. A lob from Dalton to Christian Koloko made it a tied game. The Lakers took the lead by one after a three by D’Lo.
Both teams started taking turns with the lead until the Lakers took control thanks to AD knocking down a big three to put L.A. up by three. Memphis’ Edey responded by scoring on a layup to make it a one-point game.
A dunk by LeBron, followed by another three by AD, put L.A. up by six. With 1:47 left, the Lakers were holding onto a six-point lead until a dunk by Jackson Jr made it a four-point game. Austin then converted on a 3-pointer to essentially seal the deal.
The Grizzlies played the foul game to extend the final minute, but there was no legitimate threat of the Lakers losing this game.
Key Takeaways:
The Dalton game we were all waiting for arrived fabulously, with the rookie taking complete control to start the fourth. He singlehandedly jump-started the high energy.
L.A.’s turnovers were atrocious, one of the major reasons the Lakers fell out of sync offensively in the third quarter.
Christian Koloko may not have had a great offensive game, but he had two huge dunks and did a nice job filling in as the only backup center for LA.
The Lakers’ next game will be their first Emirates NBA Cup game against the San Antonio Spurs on Friday at 4:30 PM PT.
You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.
