Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green (23) shoots against Los Angeles Lakers forward Rui Hachimura during the first half at the Chase Center in San Francisco on Sat Feb 11, 2023 (AP News photo)
By Jerry Feitelberg
The new-look Los Angles Lakers (26-31), playing without LeBron James, who was out with a sore foot, won the game in crunch time to down the Golden State Warriors (28-28), 109-103.
The Lakers acquired guard D’Angelo Russell from Minnesota on Thursday. The Lakers also added Jarred Vanderbilt and Rui Hachimura to their lineup. The Warriors’ Stephen Curry is out with a knee injury, and the team will re-evaluate his status after the All-Star break. The Warriors were hoping to atone for their loss in crunch time to the Portland Trailblazers Wednesday night.
Neither team could get anything going in the first quarter. Buckets took a lot of work to come by. Each team seemed out of sync. The Warriors committed seven turnovers in the first 12 minutes of the game. The Warriors finished the first period leading by one point, 22-21.
The Warriors’ offense came to life in the second period. The Warriors raced to a 39-31 after Kevon Looney’s basket. It was the Warriors’ biggest lead of the night. The Lakers kept coming back as they tied the game at 49 late in the first half. The Warriors held on to lead by two, 53-51, at the end of the first 24 minutes of the game.
For most of the third quarter, neither team would give an inch. If the Warriors had the lead, the Lakers found a way to either tie the game or take the lead. The game was tied six times until late in the period. With the score tied at 79, the Lakers scored the last quarter six points of the period to lead 85-79. The Warriors gave the Lakers a big break when they fouled Jarred Vanderbilt at the buzzer.
Trailing by six entering the last 12 minutes of the game is relatively easy to overcome. All the Warriors needed was for someone to get hot. That someone was Jordan Poole. Poole was the only player on the floor to put points on the board until late in the quarter. Poole scored 17 points to bring the Warriors within three, 96-93.
Backup guard, Ty Jerome, tied the game at 98. The Lakers went on a 7-0 run to lead 105-98. Donte DiVincenzo connected on a three. The Lakers scored to lead 107-101. Di Vincenzo made a two-pointer to trail 107-103. The Warriors needed a miracle to win the game, and the miracle didn’t happen.
Game Notes and stats: With the loss, the Warriors are now 28-28. The Lakers are 26-31.
The Warriors had six players in double figures Saturday night. Poole led the team with 29. 17 of his 29 points came in the fourth quarter. Di Vincenzo and Jerome were the other Warriors to score in the fourth quarter. Di Vincenzo had five, and Jerome had two. Andrew Wiggins, Draymond Green, JaMychal Green, and Klay Thompson failed to score.
Thompson was ice-cold in the fourth quarter. Thompson took 80 shots and missed on all eight attempts. Thompson had 15, Wiggins 12, Draymond Green had 12 points and ten rebounds, JaMychal Green had eleven, and Jerome ten.
The leading scorer for LA was Dennis Schroder, with 26. Hachimura had 16, Anthony Davis 13 points and 16 rebounds, and Vanderbilt 12. D’Angelo Russell, in his first game as a Laker, knocked down 15.
The Lakers shot 45% from the floor, the Warriors 41%: the Lakers made eight threes, and the Warriors 12. The game was won at the free throw line for the second game in a row. The Lakers made 21 free throws in 26 tries. The Warriors made eleven in 12 tries. The ten-point difference at the free throw line won the game for LA.
The Warriors host the Washington Wizards at the Chase Center Monday night. The game will start at 7 pm.
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