The Los Angeles Lakers came on top of the Clippers in the main event of the day, as purple and gold beat their city rival with 103-101. LeBron James was in the middle of attention in the game-deciding moments, scoring a two-pointer on one end, and locking down Kawhi and Paul George on the other.
James delivered a go-ahead two-pointer with 12.8 seconds to go after scoring after his own miss. He would hit the front part of the rim, but managed to get himself an offensive rebound in the heart of the paint and score.
[embed]https://twitter.com/NBAonTNT/status/1289051580025561088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw[/embed]After that, LBJ stopped Kawhi’s effort to find a position to shoot and took over Paul George once receiving the ball, making his three-point attempt very difficult. He earned a hard-fought win for the LAL in a very interesting game.
The Lakers opened the game very well, getting a double-digit lead in the latter part of the opening period and wrapping up that sequence with 35-23. As time went by in the second quarter, the Clippers were starting to increase the pressure. They would reach the rivals, and take the lead right following the start of the third period.
Doc Rivers’ team made a 14-1 surge which saw them making a 66-55 lead, but that didn’t last for too long, because the Lakers erased their deficit until the end of the same period.
In the final frame, the LAL started to push hard early on, creating an 11-point advantage, but the stubborn Clippers didn’t want to back out. They caught up LBJ and the guys, yet, without having the strength to notch a victory.
Anthony Davis was magnificent for the Lakers with 34 points, 8 boards, and four assists, missing just one of his 17 free throw attempts. LeBron had 16 points as well, with 11 boards and seven assists, the same as Kyle Kuzma, who had seven boards.
Among the Clippers, Paul George dropped 30, 6-for-11 for three, with five boards, Kawhi recorded 28 buckets, 11-for-13 from the line. It was obvious that Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell’s absence hurt Rivers’ team a lot.
In the next contest, the Clippers are facing the New Orleans Pelicans, while on the other side, the Lakers play against Toronto. Both games are on Saturday.