Los Angeles Lakers (3-1)  |  Portland Trail Blazers (1-3)

The Lakers finished the first half of this game dominating the Trail Blazers. The score was 78 to 51.

 

The Lakers’ domination started as soon as the game began. They had a 15-0 run in the first four minutes of the game. The LeBron James and Anthony Davis show from game three continued as they were clearly the stars of this half.

Davis utilized his deadly mid-range jumper, finishing the first quarter with 16 points. He finished the first half with 18 points shooting 5 for seven from the floor with four assists and two blocks.

Much like Saturday night, tonight, James could not be stopped either having an insanely efficient half. He finished the half with 22 points and seven assists, shooting 8 for nine from the floor and 3 for four from three. 

The reason Davis only scored 2 points in the second quarter is that the rest of the Lakers players started scoring as well.

He only attempted seven shots in the first half, making 3 of them. Every time he tried to drive, Davis would be in the paint to stop anything from happening. There were many defensive switches by the Lakers, which ended up with Davis guarding Lillard. Once the Lakers decided to rest their starters, Kuzma played great defense on Lillard as well, heavily contesting most of his shots. The Laker’s three-point struggles did not occur during this half in the slightest. They shot an impressive 57.9 percent from three for the half.

Injuries were a concern for both teams in the third quarter.

Davis did not play in the second half due to back spasms. It did not look to be serious, and after the game, he said that he is fine. As for the Trail Blazers, Lillard had an injury that looked more serious. He was with a trainer grimacing in pain after leaving the game. Both players did not play the rest of the game, but it was not as concerning for Davis since the Lakers had a huge lead, and he looked okay. Lillard, on the other hand, was being evaluated by even more trainers later, and things did not end up looking better.

James was by far the star of the game finishing with 30 points, 10 assists, and 6 rebounds. He shot 10 for 12 and could not be stopped.

The Lakers bench also put up a stellar performance. The Lakers finished the game with nearly 50 bench points. Kuzma was the best player off the bench; he shot 6 of 12 with 18 points. From three, he managed to shoot an impressive 5 for 9. Another impressive off the bench performance came from Dwight Howard, he put up 13 points and eight rebounds, shooting 5 for seven from the floor.

Two starters that also did well besides James and Davis were Green and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. Green shot 5 for eight and put up 14 points. He was an efficient 3 for four from beyond the arch. Caldwell-Pope shot 5 for eight from the floor as well, finishing with 12 points. 

The Trail Blazers could not rebound after their dreadful first half. Losing Lillard hurt their chances for a comeback. Late Monday night Yahoo! Sports NBA Insider Chris Haynes reported that Lillard’s MRI came back inconclusive and is scheduled for another MRI Tuesday afternoon.

As for the Lakers, they looked better than they have in any other game this series. Their three-point struggles were not an issue during this game; they finished shooting 17 for 39 from three, which is an impressive 43.6 percent.

The Lakers look to finish the series in Game 5 on Wednesday. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:00 pm, and it airs on on ESPN.

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-Kyle Randolph – Franchise Sports Media

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