Lakers struggles versus C’s show season trend

LOS ANGELES, CA — The Lakers once again come up on the short end of the stick after being outshot by the Celtics in a 122-118 overtime loss.

Jayson Tatum led the Celtics to victory with an amazing 44-point performance coming off a big loss to the Clippers just 24 hours prior. The Celtics played a solid two and a half quarters of basketball as the Lakers trailed by as many as 20 points, before making a strong 18-0 run to end the third quarter. 

Los Angeles managed to take the lead in the fourth quarter and had an opportunity to take the win. However, Anthony Davis once again missed two crucial free throws that allowed Tatum to tie the game with less than 20 seconds remaining.

“Make two free throws, go up four, different ballgame. To me, the rest doesn’t matter. Had a chance to ice the game and missed both,” Davis said.

The Lakers opened up the overtime period with two consecutive baskets before seeming to run out of gas and the young legs of the Celtics took over. Boston’s shots were falling at the right time which allowed them to be victorious. Between questionable rotations in the fourth quarter and overtime period, and missed free throws that continued to haunt the Lakers. While on the road in Philadelphia against the Sixers, Davis missed key free throws that cost the Lakers a victory.

Davis was distraught after the loss on Tuesday night at Crypto.com Arena, yet his teammate Lebron James voiced ultimate confidence in Davis.

“It means he loves the game. If it were the other way around, and he was running around there smiling you’d be questioning what type of teammate you got,” James on the demeanor of Davis postgame. “I know who I’m rocking and rolling with every night.”

James, Davis and Russell Westbrook combined for 90 points, yet it came down to some clutch shooting by Boston and missed opportunities at the line.

“That game just says a lot about our experience and mental toughness,” Jaylen Brown, who finished with 25 points, said.

Davis and the rest of the Lakers hold themselves to higher standards especially coming off a road trip that saw the team finish 3-3.

“Got a chance as a team, but me personally, to kind of seal both games. Missed one in Philly, missed both tonight. Both resulted in losses,” Davis, who finished with 37 points and 12 rebounds, said.

Lakers head coach Darvin ham remained optimistic and expressed how much he liked the fight in his team, yet seeing them exhausted only heightened the awareness for certain decisions he needs to make moving forward.

“I could have done a better job in certain instances in using my timeouts quicker, “Ham explained. “But that falls on me. Got to get better in that regard.”

It was the second time the Lakers lost a game where they led by double figures with five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter this season.

The team will regroup and be prepared for the Denver Nuggets on Friday night at Crypto.com Arena.


Discover more from News4usonline

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Discover more from News4usonline

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading