By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
They almost let it slip away, but Anthony Davis and the Los Angeles Lakers held on to get past the Golden State Warriors
Davis, after dropping 30 points and 23 rebounds, pushed the Lakers past the Warriors 117-112 at the Chase Center to take an early 1-0 series lead in the Western Conference semifinals.
German guard Dennis Schroder had a solid game for the Lakers with 19 points, including the last two that sealed the game with 2.1 seconds left.
Still, the win, after what was a rather dominant start to the second half, almost slipped away in the final moments.
The Warriors, who fell into a 14-point hole early in the fourth quarter, responded with a perfect 14-0 run capped by a pair of huge 3-pointers from Jordan Poole and Stephen Curry over nearly five minutes to completely erase the Lakers’ lead late in the game.
Curry’s wide-open 3-pointer, however, was the last bucket the Warriors got. The Lakers held Golden State scoreless the rest of the way and knocked down a few free throws to seal the five-point win and take the early series lead.
That led to the Warriors’ fourth-quarter run, which came up just a little too late.
Curry led the Warriors with 27 points in the loss, and Thompson finished with 25 points. Kevon Looney added 10 points and 23 rebounds, marking his fourth game this postseason with at least 20 rebounds.
LeBron James added 22 points and 11 rebounds to go with Davis’ 30 point night. The Lakers have now won 15 of their last 19 games.
The Knicks get the home win
Jalen Brunson scored 30 points Tuesday night and keyed the run the Knicks needed just in time for a 111-105 victory over a Miami Heat team playing without Jimmy Butler, as the tied the series at 1-1.
Julius Randle returned from a sprained left ankle that sidelined him in Game 1 with 25 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists, and RJ Barrett scored 16 of his 24 points in the first quarter.
Josh Hart finished with 14 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists. German big man Isaiah Hartenstein had three points and nine rebounds also for the winning side
Caleb Martin scored 22 points in place of Butler for the Heat, who host Game 3 on Saturday. They will hope to have Butler, the leading scorer in the playoffs who sat out after spraining his right ankle late in their 108-101 victory in the opener.