The Los Angeles Lakers came up short tonight against the Los Angeles Clippers. Check out our recap and highlights of the loss.
The Los Angeles Lakers struggle against the Los Angeles Clippers continued on Monday night. After losing to the Clippers on opening night, the Lakers lost again on Monday. The first meeting was a blowout, this one was much closer as the Lakers lost to the Clippers 120-115.
It is a disappointing loss for the Lakers as they began the fourth quarter with a two-point lead. They would open that lead up to as many as eight points before the Clippers went on a run to take the lead and keep the Lakers at bay.
The Lakers were done in by a missed call the referees with 7:52 remaining in the game. Austin Rivers went to the line for two shots, making the first. He missed the second and got his own rebound but it was clear on replays that he went into the lane early.
Instead of getting the ball back up seven, Rivers found Lou Williams for a 3-pointer to cut the Lakers lead to only four points. It was the start of an extended run for the Clippers, who went on a 15-2 run to take control of the game.
Los Angeles Lakers
Solely blaming the referees would be a cop out as the Lakers didn’t do a good job of slowing down their old teammate in Williams. Williams was terrific, as he dropped 42 points on his former team. He was 12-of-21 from the field, making 4-of-8 from deep and living at the foul line where he made all 14 of his attempts.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope did what he could to keep up with Williams. He scored a season-high 29 points, 16 of which came in the first quarter. Unfortunately for the Lakers Caldwell-Pope went on an extended cold streak as he missed seven consecutive shots at one point.
Brandon Ingram had a strong game for the Lakers despite battling foul trouble. He played only 22 minutes but managed to score 17 points with five rebounds. Brook Lopez also battled foul trouble as he played only 16 minutes and was never able to get into a rhythm.
The Lakers once again received excellent production from their bench. Kyle Kuzma was moved to the second unit with Larry Nance Jr. returning and he didn’t miss a beat scoring 15 points. Julius Randle added 11 points, while Jordan Clarkson scored 17.
While the Lakers got back Nance Jr. for their starting power forward spot, the Clippers lost their starting power forward. Blake Griffin was injured in the fourth quarter when Rivers rolled up on him and left with what looked like a knee injury.
Highlights
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Throw it down, B.I. #LakeShow pic.twitter.com/DZrs2eiqmY
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) November 28, 2017
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The Lakers record now sits at 8-12 on the season and things are about to pick up in the difficulty department. The Lakers will face the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday which will begin a brutal stretch of games where the Lakers metal will be tested.