Anthony Davis #3 of the Los Angeles Lakers dunks the ball in the fourth quarter of the game against the Washington Wizards at Capital One Arena on December 04, 2022 in Washington, DC. Greg Fiume/Getty Images/AFP
Anthony Davis erupted for a season-high 55 points, four shy of his career-high, and recorded his 10th consecutive double-double with 17 rebounds as the Los Angeles Lakers raced to a big lead then held off the host Washington Wizards, 130-119, on Sunday.
The Lakers scored their fifth win in the last six games, third win in a row, and fourth consecutive road victory with Sunday’s decision. Davis has been electric throughout Los Angeles’ resurgence, and the defeat of Washington was his strongest performance yet.
He shot an eye-popping 22-of-30 from the floor, was 9-of-9 at the free-throw line, and did his part in staving off an attempted fourth-quarter rally by the Wizards with a 6-of-8 shooting performance in the period, including a successful 3-point attempt.
Sunday marked Davis’ second straight game with 44 or more points, and came almost three years to the day of his last 50-point effort. He finished with 50 points exactly in a Dec. 8, 2019, win over Minnesota.
🔥 55 PTS (22/30 FGM)
🔥 17 REB
🔥 3 BLK@AntDavis23 went double-nickel to follow up his 44-point performance in his last game 🔥 pic.twitter.com/IjYfWN6DEa— NBA (@NBA) December 5, 2022
Los Angeles led almost the entire way, taking control in the second quarter. Davis scored 10 of the Lakers’ points during a 17-8 run late in the period, while Lonnie Walker IV contributed five points to the run.
Walker finished with 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the floor. LeBron James added 29 points, eight rebounds and six assists. Russell Westbrook came off the bench to dish 15 assists and grabbed seven rebounds.
The Los Angeles lead ballooned to as many as 29 points in the third quarter, but Washington chipped away during the fourth quarter.
Behind Kristaps Porzingis’ 27 points and nine rebounds, and 26 points from former Laker Kyle Kuzma, the Wizards pulled within 11 points in the final period but could get no closer.
Washington shot 49-of-105 from the floor, including 10-of-39 from 3-point range. The loss of Bradley Beal to a leg injury just minutes into the contest limited Washington’s ability to generate points from the perimeter.