L.A. Lakers let one slip away to Golden State on MLK Day
LOS ANGELES -- The Los Angeles Lakers led by as many as 19 points and seemingly had control for most of the game.
However, a late rally by the Golden State Warriors gave them a 115-113 win over the Lakers at the Staples Center.
Draymond Green and Stephen Curry mustered some magic at the end of the game to propel their team to victory.
Green made back-to-back lay-ins, helping Golden State grab a 112-110 lead with 1:36 left to play. After an Anthony Davis miss, Curry drained a long 3-pointer from the top of the circle to put the Warriors ahead 115-110 with just over a minute left.
The Lakers cut Golden State's deficit to two points and had a chance to win the game, but LeBron James' long 3-pointer clanked off the rim as the buzzer sounded.
Dennis Schröder got the Lakers going early with relentless drives to the basket that the Golden State Warriors struggled to contain.
Schröder finished with 14 of his team-high 25 points in the opening quarter as the Lakers jumped out to a double-digit advantage.
Along with Schröder, Anthony James notched a double-double, totaling 17 points and 17 rebounds and James added 19 points and five assists for the Lakers on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, as the NBA honored the fallen Civil Rights leader.
Curry finished with a game-high 26 points.
The Loss snapped a five-game winning streak for the Lakers and dropped them to 11-4 on the year, while the Warriors improved to 7-6 on the season.
Top player: Montrezl Harrell had another good game off the bench, finishing with 17 points and eight rebounds. Kyle Kuzma also had a decent shooting night, totaling 15 points and 10 rebounds, his second straight double-double.
What I liked: Anthony Davis finished with six assists in the opening quarter, a career high for a single quarter. The ball movement of the Lakers was good, with 23 assists on 40 field goals.
What I did not like: The Lakers turned it over 19 times, leading to 23 points for the Warriors.
Injuries: Jared Dudley missed a fifth straight game with right calf soreness.
They said it: “Their style of play is still in place. We feel like we played against this style of play in the NBA Finals last year. The Miami Heat played very similar to how Golden State plays. Some of the principles of my defensive scheme were put in specifically for this opponent and this style of play to try and figure out how to slow these guys down.” – Lakers head coach Frank Vogel on Golden State still playing the same style of play even though Klay Thompson is out with an injury and Kevin Durant is no longer on the roster.
