Lakers jump on Warriors early, roll to easy win
LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts as he is fouled by Kelly Oubre Jr. #12 of the Golden State Warriors as he drives to the basket between Juan Toscano-Anderson #95 and James Wiseman #33 during the second quarter at Staples Center on February 28, 2021 in Los Angeles, California. Harry How/Getty Images/AFP Copyright 2021 NBAE. (Photo by Harry How / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)
LeBron James scored 19 points, and the Los Angeles Lakers pounded the visiting Golden State Warriors 117-91 on Sunday.
James, who also had six rebounds, hit 7 of 12 shots, including 3 of 5 3-pointers in a season-low 24 minutes. He and the Lakers’ starters rested the entire fourth quarter.
Article continues after this advertisementTotal Team Effort #LakeShow @KingJames: 19 pts, 6 reb, 2 blk@Keefmorris: 13 pts, 8 reb, 4 ast@ACFresh21: 13 pts, 4 reb, 4 ast@kylekuzma: 12 pts, 11 reb
Dennis Schröder: 12 pts, 6 ast@Thortontucker: 11 pts pic.twitter.com/VmMiLXCtKZ— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) March 1, 2021
Markieff Morris contributed 13 points and eight rebounds, Alex Caruso also scored 13 and Dennis Schroder collected 12 points and six assists for the Lakers. Kyle Kuzma had 12 points and 11 rebounds and Talen Horton-Tucker scored 11 off the bench.
Stephen Curry, who entered the game averaging 29.9 points per game, managed just 16 points, seven assists and three steals as the Warriors had their three-game winning streak end. Curry misfired on five of the seven 3-pointers he attempted.
Article continues after this advertisementThe Warriors lost Draymond Green late in the second quarter with a left ankle sprain. Green, who recorded a career-high 19 assists in Friday’s win over the Charlotte Hornets, finished with six points and two assists in 13 minutes.
Golden State’s Eric Paschall scored 18 points and Kelly Oubre Jr. added 14.
The Lakers, who led by as much as 35 points, blew the contest open in the first half. They grabbed a 29-point halftime lead and kept Golden State at bay in the second half.
The Lakers used a 12-0 run to close the first quarter for a 41-21 lead. In the second quarter, the Lakers increased the margin to 60-31 after a layup by Horton-Tucker with 4:23 left.
James drilled a deep 3-pointer to put Los Angeles up 73-44 at the break.
👑🎯🚨
LBJ from DEEP at the buzzer to cap off the @Lakers 73-point 1st half on ESPN. pic.twitter.com/9ixJciJbEv
— NBA (@NBA) March 1, 2021
The Lakers outshot the Warriors 51.2 percent to 39.5 percent in the first half. They also had the edge in 3-point shooting, converting 9 of 20 to 4-17 for the Warriors before intermission.
Overall, Los Angeles made 47.6 percent of its shots to 40 percent for Golden State. On 3-pointers, the Lakers were 11 of 31 compared to 8 of 34 for the Warriors.
