After sprinting out to a 25-point lead in the first half, the Lakers authored an ugly, ugly collapse across much of the next three periods, losing to the Warriors 112-95 on Friday.
Led by Luka Dončic, LA raced out to a 38-15 lead at the end of the first. A pair of Austin Reaves free throws to open the second made it a 25-point lead.
LA then gave up the entire lead by halftime, bounced back to lead by nine in the third, then collapsed again to trail by double digits for most of the fourth.
The bench
had a woeful showing, to say the least, finishing with just seven points while shooting a combined 3-16 from the field. LA also turned the ball over 22 times, leading to 27 Warriors points.
Los Angeles jumped out to a hot start, with their big three of Luka, Austin Reaves and Walker Kessler all scoring early. Jake LaRavia added a triple, forcing Golden State to call a quick timeout after falling behind by 10.
The Lakers had the momentum throughout the quarter, with Luka taking over with 14 points.
LA’s excellent defense helped with their impressive offense. Luka and Matisse Thybulle combined for four steals. With 3:01 left, Los Angeles was up by 14. Golden State ended the quarter shooting an abysmal 22% from the field.
The purple and gold were up by 23 at the end of the first. Every starter scored, led by Luka’s 21 points.
De’Anthony Melton scored a quick seven points off the bench early in the second period. Golden State were suddenly rolling with a 10-0 run. The Warriors continued to mount their comeback, cutting what was once a 25-point Laker lead to nine.
All this happened with Luka getting his usual second-quarter rest.
Reaves had begun to heat up, scoring four points and helping keep the Lakers from completely erasing their lead. Still, it was a tale of two quarters, though, with Golden State closing the half on a 16-2 scoring run led by Steph Curry and Melton.
The game was tied at halftime.
LA started the third period much better than the second, with Luka, Reaves and LaRavia scoring a combined 13 points. The team was on a 13-4 run, giving themselves a little cushion.
Draymond Green and Steph combined for four points for the Warriors.
Steph once again ignited, draining two triples that chipped away at Los Angeles’ lead but Luka and Kessler responded with eight points to help keep the team ahead. In true Golden State fashion, they once again tied it with a 12-4 run.
The third ended with the Warriors going up by five. The purple and gold shot 9-22 in the quarter. The Lakers’ bench continued to struggle with just five points.
Things went from bad to worse for the Lakers as the Warriors started the final frame, extending their lead to 10 on the shoulders of Brandin Podziemski, who now had 17 points.
It was a non-stop Steph flurry as he added another six points to up his total to 28. The Lakers looked defeated as Reaves and Luka tried to give some life, putting up a quick combined five, but the team was down by 15 with 6:16 left.
There was no run that would come from the Lakers, though, as they failed to string together stops and scores. With 1:21 left, LA waved the white flag and emptied their bench.
Key Player Stats
Luka finished with 37 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Reaves had a rough offensive game with 21 points on 9-19 shooting with eight turnovers. Walker Kessler pitched in with 10 points, 13 rebounds and five blocks.
Thybulle scored 10 points with three steals. LaRavia logged 10 points while stepping into the starting lineup, shooting 3-7 from the field.
The Lakers’ next game will be against the Toronto Raptors on Sunday at 6:00 PM PT.
You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.
