New FSM Essential Recap: Lakers vs Trail Blazers - Game 10

New FSM Essential Recap: Lakers vsTrail Blazers- Game 10

Franchise Sports Media

Los Angeles Lakers (5-5) | Portland Trail Blazers (2-6)

 

The Los Angeles Lakers suffered another difficult loss to the Portland Trail Blazers by a final score of 105-90, falling to 5-5 on the season.

 

Damian Lillard got the game’s scoring underway for Portland by hitting a three-pointer after Jusuf Nurkic won the opening tip. Robert Covington followed up with a three on the next possession. Avery Bradley tried to match the Trail Blazers’ opening run with four quick points to even the game at six. The game would remain close early on in the first quarter as Anthony Davis and DeAndre Jordan threw down dunks to keep the game within two points after the tandem of Lillard and CJ McCollum displayed their flashiness early on.

The Trail Blazers began to open up the game as they scored 13 straight points, led by paint points from Nurkic. Nurkic scored six of the 13 points during the run before it was finally stopped by a Dwight Howard layup. The Blazers quickly answered back with a layup of their own from Anfernee Simons, followed by threes from both McCollum and Nassir Little. McCollum added a jump shot at the end of the quarter for good measure as the Lakers struggled their way through a dismal first quarter, trailing Portland 36-14 after the opening frame.

Davis left the game early due to a non-COVID illness, leaving the team short of their superstars.

Coming off their worst quarter of the season, the Lakers tried to fight back into it with a Carmelo Anthony jumper to cut the lead to 20. The lead for Portland fell under 20 after a Malik Monk layup. The scoring pace in the second quarter was significantly lower than in the first quarter, but an Austin Reaves three cut the lead to 14. The Blazers did not let up too much as Nurkic dominated the paint to tack four points back onto the margin.

The game’s margin stalled out as the it got closer to halftime, with every Laker run being countered by a Blazers’ run that nearly matched that of Los Angeles. Russell Westbrook hit a three and followed up with a free throw to make it an 11 point game, but a free throw from Lillard and three points from Larry Nance Jr. kept the Blazers’ lead at 15 at the half.

 

Portland maintained a 51-36 lead over Los Angeles entering the locker room.

 

After the halftime break, the Lakers tried to maintain pace and generate momentum. Anthony and Westbrook cut the lead back to 11, but Lillard hit another Dame Dollar three to counter the run. Covington followed up with a three of his own. Portland dominated the third quarter as Lillard continued to live in three-point land, hitting another one to swell the lead to 21. Halfway through the quarter, Lillard again hit a three to make it a 26 point game.

The Blazers had their way with the Lakers, continuing to take advantage of the absence of Davis and LeBron James. A Covington three-pointer gave the Blazers a nearly 30 point lead with 4:39 remaining in the third quarter. The lead would break 30 through free throws from Cody Zeller, followed by points from Simons and Covington. The teams traded threes in the final minute, with the final score coming from Wayne Ellington. Like the first quarter, Portland dominated the third quarter and built a 93-62 lead over the shorthanded Lakers.

The Blazers started the fourth quarter by sitting Lillard and McCollum due to the lead they built. The fourth quarter went scoreless for the first 1:40 until Monk sank a three, only to be answered by a three from Little. The first half of the frame saw no momentum gains for the Lakers as they could not get stops or trigger any scoring runs.

The game’s final five minutes saw the Lakers allow Sekou Doumbouya to showcase his craft, scoring seven straight points after a Monk layup. The lead was cut to 25 after Doumbouya’s run but stalled out after a Ben McLemore three-pointer. Doumbouya, Reaves, and Monk ended the game on a 9-0 run for the Lakers, but it wasn’t enough as the Blazers got the win 105-90.

The remainder of the Lakers’ lineup struggled mightily throughout the game, as no starters scored double-digit points. Westbrook had a rough shooting night going just 1-13 from the field. The Lakers’ leading scorer was Monk with 13 points, followed by 12 from Anthony in 29 minutes of action. Howard scored 11 points in just 15 minutes, while Reaves and Soumbouya each scored 10 points.

On the other side, the Blazers saw four starters reach double-digit points, led by Lillard with 25 points off of 6-14 shooting from behind the arc. Nurkic had a double-double with 15 points and 17 rebounds, along with 13 points from Norman Powell and 12 from Covington. Simons added 10 points in 23 minutes off the bench.

 

The Lakers’ next game is Monday at Staples Center as they host the Charlotte Hornets. The game will begin at 7:30 and can be seen on Spectrum SportsNet.

 

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– Matt Dobbs – Franchise Sports Media

Follow Matt on Twitter @RecordBowlerFSM

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