For the second time in as many nights, the Lakers blew out a Pacific Division foe. LA surged out to a big lead in the first quarter, withstood a small comeback attempt in the third and then cruised to a 128-104 win over the Kings.
Much like Saturday’s win in Golden State, LA fell behind briefly at the very start, took the lead and then never came close to trailing again. After opening up a double-digit lead just past the midway point of the first, the margin never dipped into single digits again.
The Lakers shot 50% from the field and 46.2% from three while assisting on 34 of their 47 field goals.
The game started with the midrange master DeMar DeRozan converting on a jumper. However, those were the only points the Kings could muster, as the Lakers were on a roll, scoring 10 in a row. Austin Reaves connected with LeBron James for an explosive alley-oop that started with excellent defense from Marcus Smart.
Nique Clifford and Russell Westbrook scored layups to stop some of the bleeding for Sacramento. Clifford was leading the Kings with six points. Everyone in the starting five, except for Smart, scored some points for LA.
Luka Dončić made his first triple of the night, which helped extend the Lakers’ lead to 14 with 3:05 left in the first. He then knocked down another one soon after. LA ended the quarter on a 13-4 scoring run for an 18-point lead.
Luke Kennard opened the second period with a 3-pointer. Malik Monk scored a quick four in a row for the Kings. Sacramento ramped up its defense, forcing Los Angeles into sloppy play.
Smart and Luka both drained triples to restore the order. Maxi Kleber got in on the scoring as well with an emphatic dunk off an assist from Luka, which had Los Angeles’ bench losing their minds.
Things got a little spicy with Monk picking up a technical foul after a confrontation with Kleber. Deandre Ayton was a perfect 5-5 from the field for 10 points. Ayton, Reaves and Luka were all double figures for the Lakers.
Los Angeles pushed its lead to as much as 22, but 12 points from Westbrook, combined with LA’s offense cooling to 40% in the quarter, helped the Kings cut the deficit to 15 by halftime.
The second half started with Clifford scoring on a triple. Ayton responded on the other end with a hook shot. Sacramento was off to a hot start in the quarter, shooting 66% from the field. Clifford and Westbrook combined for seven of the nine Kings’ points.
At the 9:06 mark, the purple and gold were nursing a 10-point lead.
Reaves connected with LeBron for a much-needed dunk to stop some of Sacramento’s momentum. That kickstarted a 10-2 scoring run, with Luka scoring five in a row, extending the Lakers’ lead to 19.
Luka really started cooking again with two triples, one of which was swished after he slipped and nearly lost the ball.
Clifford was still cooking for the Kings, and he was their leading scorer with 22 points. At the end of the third quarter, the Lakers were up by 20.
Sacramento turned the ball over to open the fourth, leading to LeBron being fouled and converting on a pair of free throws. Smart knocked down his third 3-pointer of the game.
Kleber added more to his stellar night off the bench with another thunderous dunk. After two 3-pointers from LeBron, he was subbed out, and Los Angeles’ bench closed out another blowout victory, which included a huge dunk from Adou Thiero.
Key Player Stats
Luka finished with 28 points, five rebounds and nine assists. Reaves scored 12 points with five assists and two blocks. LeBron notched 24 points with five assists and two steals. Ayton ended with 12 points on 6-6 shooting.
Kennard had 11 points, shooting 60% from three. In his first game back from an illness, Rui Hachimura finished with eight points and two rebounds.
Smart tallied nine points with three rebounds and five steals. Kleber ended with six points and six rebounds.
The Lakers’ next matchup will be against the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday at 7:30 PM PT.
You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.
