The Los Angeles Lakers played with a greater sense of urgency from the get-go, opening Game 2 of their first round series against the Portland Trail Blazers with a 27-19 first quarter lead.
They started playing with a larger lineup at points too, at one point playing with a lineup of LeBron James, J.R. Smith, Kyle Kuzma, Markieff Morris Sr., and Dwight Howard. The size advantage helped them bully their way into the paint.
A big part of the Lakers’ first half success was that they shared the ball and got more people involved in the offense. They did get a big first half from Anthony Davis, too. At the break, he already had 20 points, seven rebounds, two assists, and a block.
The Blazers found themselves down 56-39 at the break, and the Lakers defense helped them to an atrocious shooting performance. By the end of the second quarter, they had shot 35.7% from the field, 21.4% from three, and 66.7% at the charity stripe.
The Lakers were in total control to in the second half, pushing the lead to 27 with just under four minutes played in the third quarter. Davis continued his domination, and started to click from beyond the arc as well.
The Blazers’ woes were compounded after they Damian Lillard asked to be subbed out late in the third after jamming his thumb. The Lakers were already up 30 points as he left the game for good.
There wasn’t a lot to fight for in the final stanza, as the Lakers entered it ahead 88-58 – effectively putting the game out of reach.
LeBron James (10 PTS, 6 REB, 7 AST) didn’t have monster night on the scoreboard, but his impact was felt in the game. He facilitated, got his teammates involved, and was also their most energetic cheerleader when he was on the pine. Being the veteran that he is, he’ll be happy to conserve some energy for the next game in the series. He left the game for good with over nine minutes left in the fourth quarter.
The player of the game was definitely Anthony Davis (31 PTS, 11 REB, 3 AST, 1 STL, 1 BLK), who was a force on both ends and did enough to earn himself a rest for the whole fourth quarter.
We wondered how the Lakers would respond after losing Game 1, and they gave us their answer. It was a masterful effort on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor that showed exactly why they are one of the favorites to win it all this year. The 111-88 final scoreline was well-deserved.
Other games:
The Miami Heat used another balanced effort to defeat the Indiana Pacers 109-100 for a 2-0 series lead. They were led in scoring by Duncan Robinson (24 PTS) and got solid contributions from their two veterans Jimmy Butler (18 PTS, 7 REB, 6 AST) and Goran Dragic (20 PTS, 3 REB, 6 AST).
James Harden (21 PTS, 5 REB, 9 AST) didn’t have one of his trademark scoring explosions for the Houston Rockets, but they still took a 111-98 win against the Oklahoma City Thunder to take a 2-0 lead in the series. They spread the ball around well, which saw seven of eight Rockets players score in double digits.
Giannis Antetokounmpo (29 PTS, 20 REB, 5 AST) would not be denied in Game 2 as he helped lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a 111-96 victory to tie the series 1-1. Nikola Vujevic (32 PTS, 10 REB) had another monster game for the Orlando Magic, but he didn’t get much help, with none of his teammates coming near 20 points.
