After a slow start, the Lakers finally snapped their losing streak on Thursday with a blowout win in San Francisco over the Warriors, 119-103.
LA led throughout the first quarter, but only by single digits. Golden State, who were without Steph Curry, pulled ahead early in the second before the visitors took the lead and didn’t look back.
The Lakers turned 19 Warriors turnovers into 28 points, the main catalyst behind them blowing the game open in the second half. All five starters scored in double
figures for LA.
It was a solid offensive start for LA with an early seven-point lead. Deandre Ayton had five points and LeBron James was close behind him with four points. Pat Spencer was the leading scorer for the Warriors with four points.
Golden State missed all four of its attempts from behind the arc.
Meanwhile, LeBron knocked down the first triple for the Lakers. LJ Cryer drained two 3-pointers in a row that helped give the Warriors a burst of life. At the 2:11 mark, Los Angeles was only up by three.
A quick five-point surge from LeBron, including a dunk on the assist by Bronny James, gave the purple and gold a five-point lead at the end of the first.
Seth Curry and Gary Payton II started the second period and helped give Golden State the lead with a 9-0 scoring run. Los Angeles suddenly played sloppily, turning the ball over three times, which helped fuel the Warriors’ surge.
LeBron drained a triple to stop the bleeding for the Lakers.
A 7-0 scoring run put LA back in the lead. Rui Hachimura knocked down his first 3-pointer of the half. He had eight points in this quarter, a major reason why Los Angeles had regained the momentum.
The Lakers were up by five at the 4:16 mark.
Bronny had a productive showing, scoring four points. LA had built a big lead of nine, but the Warriors chipped away at the deficit to make it a four-point lead for Los Angeles at halftime.
LeBron and Jake LaRavia combined for a quick five points to open the second half. Golden State turned the ball over twice, which helped the Lakers mount that sudden early surge. The Warriors were forced to call a timeout as they were now down by nine.
Out of the break, Brandin Podziemski scored on a layup.
Ayton was now at 15 points for the night with 10 points in the quarter. Four of LA’s five starters were in double figures; Kennard had seven points. At the three-minute mark, Los Angeles was up by 14. Bronny had a productive seven points off the bench.
A 6-0 Malevy Leons scoring run to end the third made it a nine-point game.
The Lakers opened the final frame with their own 6-0 run of their own, led by LeBron with four points and LaRavia with a dunk. LeBron then threw down a thunderous dunk, piling on the onslaught of offense.
Nick Smith Jr. drained a triple, his first shot attempt.
Kennard then scored five in a row, which put him at 14 points. That officially marked all five starters for LA scoring in double figures. At the 6:05 mark, LeBron checked out with 26 points.
The lead continued to balloon for Los Angeles, leading to the rest of the game being cardio.
Key Player Stats
LeBron finished with 26 points, seven rebounds, 11 assists and two steals. Ayton ended with 21 points and five rebounds. Hachimura pitched in with 15 points , two rebounds, two assists and three steals.
Kennard had 14 points, two rebounds, eight assists and four steals. LaRavia notched 16 points with seven rebounds, four assists and three steals. Bronny logged 10 points in 21 minutes. Jarred Vanderbilt grabbed six rebounds and dished five dimes.
Smith Jr. scored nine points in garbage time.
The Lakers’ next matchup will be against the Phoenix Suns on Friday at 7:30 PM PT.
You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.
