Game: Los Angeles Lakers @ Golden State Warriors
Time: 9:00 p.m.
Odds: Lakers +6, Warriors -6
Total: 227.5
The Los Angeles Lakers and the Golden State Warriors will continue their best-of-seven series in San Francisco tonight. Both teams started the second round of the NBA playoffs the same way that they started the first round.
On Tuesday night, the Lakers stole Game 1 away from the Warriors by a score of 117-112 on the road. The seventh-seeded Lakers had done the same thing in their opening round series when they beat Memphis 128-112 in Game 1. On Tuesday, it was Anthony Davis that put up a huge effort to lead the Lakers. Davis finished with 30 points, 23 rebounds, and four blocks.
Davis played 44 minutes in Game 1, including all 24 minutes of the second half. Lakers head coach Darvin Ham said that Davis had only played 56 games during the regular season and had averaged just 34 minutes per game. Managing Davis’ playing time during the season is allowing Ham to play him more in the postseason.
It paid off in Game 1. Davis also had five assists on Tuesday and was aided by LeBron James. At 38, James played 40 minutes in Game 1 and contributed 22 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, and three blocked shots. The Lakers ended the game with 10 blocks, which effectively prevented the much smaller Warriors from attacking the basket. The home team took a total of 106 shots during the game, exactly half (53) of which came from beyond the three-point line.
The Warriors shot 39.6 percent from behind the arc, making 21-of-53 shots, but they were only able to get to the free throw line six times. The Warriors made five of those attempts. The more aggressive play of the Lakers paid off as they were awarded 29 free throws, of which they made 25.
Steve Kerr, the head coach for the Golden State Warriors, acknowledged the fact that his team was at a disadvantage going into the game despite the fact that Warriors fans were chirping about the 29-6 score. The outcome of the game was determined by a three-point shot, a wide-open attempt from 27 feet away that Golden State missed with 9.7 seconds left on the clock and trailing by three points.
Before his critical miss, Jordan Poole had been the most accurate three-point shooter for the Warriors in the game, making six of his previous ten attempts from beyond the arc. Stephen Curry scored 27 points while shooting 6-for-13, and Klay Thompson scored 25 points while shooting 6-for-16 from the field.
It was very similar to the late 3-pointer that Andrew Wiggins missed in Game 1 of the first round against Sacramento. Golden State lost that game by a score of 126-123. The Warriors continued to struggle throughout that series, dropping Game 2 away from home as well before bouncing back to win four of the final five games and advance.
The Lakers did not perform well on the road in their first-round series, losing Game 2 in Memphis by 10 points and Game 5 by 17 points.
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