The Los Angeles Lakers lost to the defending champion Golden State Warriors 116-114 in another OT thriller.
The Los Angeles Lakers headed into the matchup with high hopes for a win against the Golden State Warriors as they came close in a nail-biter last time. The topic of the night, however, was the jersey retirement of Kobe Bryant.
With the Lakers’ playoff hopes dwindling and Kobe’s jersey retirement making history, this may have been the team’s biggest game of the season. Unfortunately, the young Lakers were unable to take down the reigning champs on the Black Mamba’s big night.
Kyle Kuzma led the Lakers with his second-highest scoring game of the season. He scored 25 points on 62.5 percent shooting from the floor and 66.7 percent from deep. In addition to shooting so well from deep, Kuzma also shot a high volume as he knocked down four triples. The rookie also added six rebounds, three assists, and a block for an incredibly well-rounded performance.
As for the Warriors, Kevin Durant forced the win with an astounding 36 points, 11 rebounds, and eight assists. He, however, struggled mightily with his shot as he finished the night shooting 34.5 percent from the floor and 36.4 percent from deep. Although the shots were not falling early for him, Durant was still able to come through in the clutch by hitting the game-winning shot.
The Lakers next game will be on Wednesday against the Houston Rockets at the Toyota Center. Before we get to that game, however, lets a look at a few takeaways from last night’s game.