The Los Angeles Lakers got their road trip started off on the right foot, defeating the Denver Nuggets 105-96.
The Los Angeles Lakers are entering a difficult stretch of their schedule. They embarked on a three-game road trip after getting handled rather easily by the Dallas Mavericks over the weekend.
Despite the setback against the Mavericks, players were confident that it would not snowball. Anthony Davis essentially guaranteed that the Lakers would not lose back-to-back games.
It was quite a guarantee, as the first stop on the road trip was a visit to the Denver Nuggets, the second-place team in the Western Conference and owners of an 8-2 home record. Well, that record dropped to 8-3, as Davis kept his promise.
AD played a strong game against the Nuggets to help the Lakers avoid back-to-back losses. He scored 25 points with 10 rebounds, his third straight double-double and ninth of the season. His running partner, LeBron James, had a similar stat line.
James finished the game with 25 points as well, as both he and Davis went 9-of-18 from the field in 37 minutes. LeBron added nine assists and six rebounds.
The Lakers’ superstar duo paced the team offensively. They scored 50 of the team’s 105 points as Dwight Howard with 13 points and Rajon Rondo, with 11, were the only other Lakers to score in double-figures.
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The defense was the name of the game tonight. Coming into this road trip, Los Angeles’ defense has not been great, but they stepped it up against the Nuggets. Denver shot only 40.7 percent from the field, but the most impressive number was 20.7; that is what the Lakers allowed the Nuggets to shoot from the 3-point line.
Paul Millsap was the only Nugget to make multiple 3-pointers in the game, as the Lakers were able to hold them in check. Millsap scored 21 points in total. Jamal Murray led the way for Denver with 22.
The Lakers bench played an integral role in the victory tonight as well. Howard was the only Lakers’ bench player with a negative plus/minus ratio, as Kyle Kuzma, Alex Caruso and Troy Daniels provided solid minutes along with Rondo and Howard.
This was a great start to the road trip for the Lakers. Getting the win on the front end of a back-to-back is always good, as it takes some pressure off the team for tomorrow night’s game against the Utah Jazz, who are returning home themselves after a five-game road trip.
The Jazz will provide another stiff test for the Lakers, as they are 8-1 at home and will look to shake off a 1-4 road trip.