LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Lakers pounded the Golden State Warriors 127-97 in Game 3 Saturday night, two days after suffering a 27-point loss against the Warriors in San Francisco.
LeBron James had 21 points, eight rebounds and eight assists for the Lakers in front of a sellout crowd at Crypto.com Arena as Los Angeles took a 2-1 lead in the Western Conference semifinals.
Lakers star Anthony Davis, who had just 11 points and seven rebounds in the 127-100 loss to the Warriors in Game 2, responded in Game 3 with 25 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks. D’Angelo Russell scored 21 points, all coming in the first half.
Steph Curry led the Warriors with 23 points while Andrew Wiggins added 16. Klay Thompson, coming of a 30-point performance in Game 2, had 15 points on 5-for-14 shooting.
“I don’t think we did a good job defensively in Game 2, especially me,” Davis told ESPN on the court after the game. “The pick and rolls, protecting the paint. That’s kind of been my MO for the whole playoffs, just protecting our paint. I didn’t do that in Game 2. I just wanted to get back to it. Obviously, I know how I played in Game 2 which kind of helped us in that loss. I just wanted to get back to the (dominant) performance that I do defensively.”
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The Lakers were down by as many as 11 points in the first half before James helped spark a second-quarter surge.
Game 4 of the best-of-seven playoff series will be played Monday in Los Angeles.
Russell led the way for the Lakers in a first half marked by wild swings. With Russell scoring the Lakers’ first 11 points, they jumped out to a 19-12 lead.
But the Warriors responded – with force. With Golden State’s shooters heating up, the Warriors went on a 28-10 surge and opened up an 11-point lead at 40-29. But back came the Lakers with authority.
Los Angeles closed out the half on a 30-8 tear and led 59-48 at the intermission.
Davis had 16 points in the first half, more than the 11 points he had in all of Game 2.
James did not attempt a shot from the floor until there was just over eight minutes left in the half. But he helped spark the Lakers’ second-quarter surge with 10 points the rest of the way to go along with seven assists and six rebounds.
Curry paced Golden State with 13 points in the first half while Thompson added 12.
The Lakers extended their lead to 20 points late in the third quarter and entered the fourth quarter leading 86-68. The Warriors effectively conceded the game with about nine minutes left, when they pulled their starters.
“It’s a battle. Two teams that want it and can score and give each other a beatdown any given night,” Davis said. “It’s gonna be a fun match Monday. We have to make the proper adjustments and get ready.”
Celebrity sightings for Game 3 included Adele, Kim Kardashian, Michael B. Jordan, Woody Harrelson, Rob Zombie, recent top NFL pick Bryce Young, USC football coach Lincoln Riley and USC men’s basketball coach Andy Enfield. Also in attendance was Bronny James, LeBron’s oldest son, who announced his commitment to Enfield’s USC team hours earlier.
Contributing: Tyler Dragon
