Lakers silence Jazz to top In-Season Tournament group
Anthony Davis leads Lakers to a dominate win over the Utah Jazz.
The Lakers clinched a spot in the In-Season Tournament quarterfinals with a dominant win against the Utah Jazz, 131-99.
Anthony Davis led the way with 26 points, 16 rebounds, four assists, and two steals. LeBron James chipped in with 17 points, seven rebounds, and nine assists. After a struggling small stretch of games, D’Angelo Russell had a better showing, scoring 20 points with eight assists.
The Lakers came out to a nice start with LeBron continuing his incredible play. He became the first player in NBA history to score 39,000 points and also moved to No. 7 all-time in 3-pointers.
King things pic.twitter.com/1gv6sz2VuI
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) November 22, 2023
They put up 32 points to lead by 15 and the end of the first quarter. AD was on the verge of a double-double scoring 11 points with nine rebounds. Austin Reaves had an immediate impact scoring a quick five points. Cam Reddish, unfortunately, left the game with groin soreness.
The second quarter saw the Jazz cut the lead to nine. The Lakers answered back, going up 16, led by AD reaching the double-double he was flirting with in the first.
At the half, the Lakers were up 62-41. Reaves put in a nice first-half performance scoring seven points with three assists and two steals. The team as a whole was up to 36 points in the paint with 16 assists on 22 field goals.
In the third quarter, the Jazz were able to cut the lead to 15, but the Lakers answered back to lead by 20.
LBJ gets to the basket and throws one DOWN
— NBA (@NBA) November 22, 2023
The 3-0 Lakers can clinch a spot in Knockout Round with win.
NBA In-Season Tournament
West Group A action on TNT pic.twitter.com/3tiUMuCdYf
The entire quarter was a dominant masterclass by the Lakers never giving the Jazz a chance to go on any run. At the end of the third, they led 102-75.
The Jazz seemed to gain some momentum to start the fourth, but it wasn’t enough as the Lakers continued to be in control. The rest of the fourth turned into garbage time with the Jazz looking like a sad piece of music.
Key Takeaways:
A major positive was the Lakers scoring 76 points in the paint. A huge factor in their win tonight.
They also kept a lead and didn’t take their foot off the gas. In order for this team to be successful for the rest of this season, they need to consistently do that.
The rebound battle was a win again as they grabbed 59.
You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.