At Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday, the Warriors defeated the Los Angeles Lakers 134-120 to move up in the Western Conference Play-in standings. Klay Thompson scored 27 points, while the team shot a season-high 26 3-pointers.
With 23 points, seven rebounds, and eight assists, Stephen Curry led the Warriors to victory over their Southern California rivals for the third time this season.
In the Western Conference, the Warriors (44–35) came within one game of the Sacramento Kings (45–34) for the eighth slot and within half a game of the Lakers (45–35) for the ninth seed.
Golden State, who has won eight straight games, was led by Draymond Green, who finished with 15 points, 10 assists, and six rebounds. Chris Paul scored 11 points and dished out nine assists, Andrew Wiggins scored 17 points and added three blocks, and Brandin Podziemski scored 13.
LeBron James had another incredible performance, finishing with 33 points and 11 assists, but Golden State prevailed. Anthony Davis, who had an eye injury on Sunday against the Minnesota Timberwolves, was unable to play for the Lakers.
Thompson and Podziemski helped the Warriors seize the lead early on by coming out swinging. Golden State jumped out to an early double-digit lead thanks to the 18 points the two scored together in the first quarter.
By halftime, the Warriors had increased their lead to 11, and by the end of the fourth quarter, they were up 17 points. Golden State tightened up and hung on for the victory despite an attempt by the Lakers to surge.
The Warriors didn’t wait to settle in before playing for the second straight game. They started with a discernible advantage in terms of aggression, and their ability to move the ball and create open looks on offense gave them a great deal of confidence.
Golden State scored 38 points in the first 12 minutes of their game against the Lakers and finished with 71 points in the first half, two days after falling behind the Dallas Mavericks 41 points in the first quarter.
The Dubs’ defense made a significant difference, as it has been doing for the previous month or two.
In the first quarter, the Warriors limited the Lakers to 10 of 26 (38.5%) shooting, and they were almost as effective in the second quarter when Los Angeles went 10 of 24.
Sleeping Kuminga awakens in fourth place.
Following a six-game hiatus, Kuminga played very little in his second game back, save from a few plays on both ends of the court.
After missing his first five shots and going scoreless in the first half, Kuminga made a careless foul near the end of the third quarter, which allowed DeAngelo Russell to score three free throws. JK went out of bounds in the fourth quarter, which resulted in an unforced turnover.
It came as a little surprise given how well
The Warriors definitely need more from if they want to have any chance of moving on from the play-in bracket.
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