FSM Essential Recap: Lakers vs Kings- Game 12

FSM Essential Recap: Lakers vs Kings – Game 12

Franchise Sports Media

Los Angeles Lakers (2-10) | Sacramento Kings (5-6)

 

The Lakers have now lost five straight for the second time this season after falling to the Kings 120-114

 

LeBron James was out vs. Sacramento due to a left adductor strain. Dennis Schröder and Thomas Bryant progressed well from their thumb surgeries and are set to be re-evaluated on November 17th. If that evaluation goes well, both could be cleared to play on November 18th vs. Detroit.

Anthony Davis was questionable to play due to a non-COVID illness. Still, eventually, Davis was cleared and started alongside Patrick Beverley, Lonnie Walker IV, Troy Brown Jr., and Wenyen Gabriel.

Walker IV reached for the skies for a slam dunk to get the game started. Davis would then get the steal, throw it away, and then get the block as they headed into the first timeout, and the Lakers led 6-5.

But then the Lakers allowed a quick 8-2 run, and Darvin Ham promptly called for a timeout as they were now down 13-8. Coming out of the timeout, the Lakers recovered, and with Austin Reaves taking a tough shot that goes in, the game is tied 13-13.

The rookie Max Christie got some extra runs tonight as he emerged ahead of Kendrick Nunn and Matt Ryan in the rotation. Christie came in, knocked down a three, and had some excellent defensive flashes early.

In an interesting sequence, Russell Westbrook air-balled a jump shot but got his rebound and put it back up and in. Then Westbrook misses his subsequent layup and commits a frustration foul.

Reaves then broke down Chimezie Metu for the blow-by layup to close the first quarter. After one, the score read 23-23 despite the Lakers having another rough quarter offensively.

Into the second quarter, the Lakers led the Kings 35-32 as we headed to another timeout, through good energy from the bench group, especially from Christie.

Davis would drive by Domantas Sabonis and get the dunk. Sabonis then tried to even things on the other end but was called for traveling.

It was a great sequence by the Lakers. First, Reaves would steal a pass and score the fastbreak layup, then just seconds later, another pass was stolen by Beverley, and Walker IV drilled a three off a pass from Beverley. The Lakers would take an 11-point lead over the Kings as their 19-5 run extended their lead to 48-37. The Lake Show thrived in that second quarter.

Westbrook fumbled a lob pass to Walker IV, which would’ve made the Crypt erupt, but he was able to get the rebound, resulting in a Davis missed jumper.

De’Aaron Fox would complete a three-point play, but Reaves would respond by hitting a nice off-the-glass jumper, a vet move from Reaves to get that shot off as he used his body to shrug off the defender to get a clean look.

Westbrook scored at the rim on the Kings’ Kevin Huerter and immediately got called for a technical foul for taunting. Then in response, Huerter received a tech after scoring on Westbrook on the fast break.

The Lake Show led 59-48 with 36.4 seconds left in the first half. Fox and Huerter then scored off a Westbrook turnover. The Lakers had the ball with 15 seconds left, up 8, and Westbrook turned it over again. After committing a take foul with 2.0 seconds left, the Kings hit a free throw, and then a Fox three on an inbound pass cut the lead to 4. Heading into halftime, the score was 60-56, with the Lakers in the lead.

 

It was a poor end to the second quarter for the Lakers. They led by 12 points with a minute left and the Kings entered intermission with momentum.

 

Going into the second half, Sabonis converts an and-1 after a Walker IV layup. It wasn’t a bad start to the third, as the Lakers led by 7. But that lead quickly evaporated as the Lakers found their lead dwindled to 66-64 after Sabonis scored in the paint. Huerter would drill another three, and now the Lakers are losing 67-66.

Westbrook missed, and Davis cleaned it up. But Fox was on fire tonight and came back down to score a layup. Then an awkward possession occurred for the Lake Show, and Westbrook bailed the Lakers out with a three, as things were tied up at 75-75.

After a great putback from Juan Toscano-Anderson, the Lakers went back up by 2. But Metu was left alone in the paint and got a wide-open dunk to tie the game back at 79-79.

Starting off the fourth quarter, multiple possessions resulted in turnovers, and Ham had none of that as he called timeout, trailing 91-88. Then, Swipa the Fox strikes on Reaves, and the Kings go up by 5.

Back-and-forth, we go here in the fourth as the scoring picks up. First, Reaves spins on Sabonis and hits a difficult jumper off the glass as he’s falling, then Reaves, on the break, scored a contested layup.

But even with the Lake Show fighting hard, the Kings rallied to put them away. Huerter responded by sinking a jumper over Reaves, and Sabonis grabbed Fox’s airball and put it in. However, Fox wasn’t happy over his bad miss and came back down to nail a jumper over Davis.

Westbrook and Davis were battling for the rebound and put back, but they couldn’t get the ball through the hoop, and Westbrook was sent to the line for their effort.

Off a pass from Davis, Westbrook drained a clutch three to give the Lakers the lead,114-112. But with Fox converting with back-to-back buckets, the Lakers gave up an 8-0 run to lose the game in the final 2 minutes. Final, 120-114.

 

Key Takeaways

 

Davis had 24 points and 14 rebounds. Westbrook caught fire again in this one, posting 21 points on 4-7 from three, along with 11 assists and five turnovers. Reaves off the bench was solid, scoring 19 points on 7-12 shooting and adding five rebounds. Walker IV did his thing, putting up 19 points on 2-4 from three.

Sabonis was crucial for the Kings, as he had 21 points, ten rebounds, and six assists. Fox was the MVP with 32 points on 13-19 from the field, seven rebounds, and 12 assists. Huerter provided that spark with 16 points on 4-9 from three and six rebounds.

The Lakers had their bright spots in this one, posting 40.0% (10-25) from three and 47.7% (42-88) overall. They also held the Kings to just 33.3% (12-36) from three.

The Lake show loses its fifth straight game to fall to 2-10. They’re now tied with Houston for the worst record in the league. There was terrible execution on both ends down the stretch and another second half where Davis wasn’t involved enough.

Walker IV told reporters that the Lakers need to do a better job of getting Davis the ball late in games, “This is his team, and we’re gonna ride him until the wheels fall off.”

Ham told reporters that he knows there’s a “sense of urgency” in the Lakers locker room to get this right. “We just got to keep plowing through, keep working, and trust our habits.”

 

The Lakers will stay at home and take on the Brooklyn Nets. They’ll face off Sunday, November 13th, at 6:30 p.m. at the Crypto.com Arena. The game will be available on Spectrum SportsNet, NBA TV, and YES Network. Lakers vs Kings                  Lakers vs Kings                Lakers vs Kings                Lakers vs Kings                Lakers vs Kings                Lakers vs Kings                Lakers vs Kings                Lakers vs Kings                Lakers vs Kings                Lakers vs Kings                Lakers vs Kings                Lakers vs Kings                Lakers vs Kings                Lakers vs Kings                                                               

– Jake Ideguchi-Furukawa – Franchise Sports Media

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