The LA Lakers are back in Los Angeles for another game against the LA Clippers at the Intuit Dome on Thursday. Luka Doncic and Co. return to a familiar place after walking away from Denver on Tuesday with a come-from-behind 115-107 win over the Nuggets.
The “Battle of LA” got off to a fast and exciting back-and-forth. Only the home team’s 13-3 spurt, which started at the halfway point, gave it a 31-24 advantage.
James Harden ended the first 12 minutes with five points and seven assists. Three of his dimes went to Kobe Sanders, who went 3-for-3 from deep. Harden led his team to a 36-29 halftime lead.
Luka Doncic, who leads the NBA with 12.0 points per game in the first quarter, already had 14 points and three assists.
The home team dominated the second quarter 28-18 to push its lead to 64-47 at halftime. Brook Lopez, Kawhi Leonard, James Harden and Kris Dunn made their presence felt in the paint to give the hosts the momentum heading into the second half.
Harden and Co. dropped an 8-2 run to open the third quarter and give the Clippers a stranglehold on the game. The Lakers promptly called a timeout to regroup and keep within striking distance of their opponents. They played well to close the quarter but trailed 86-72 before the start of the final frame.
The Lakers steadily cut into the Clippers’ lead once the fourth quarter started. Luka Doncic’s 27-footer with 5:56 whittled the advantage down to 93-91. The home team responded with an 11-0 blast before a Doncic free throw made it 102-92.
The Crypto.com Arena-based team refused to quit, creeping to within 105-102 after LeBron James made two free throws with 1:28 to go. A late miss by Doncic from 3-point distance, which was followed by two James Harden free throws, sealed the 112-104 win for the hosts.
Lakers vs Clippers Player Stats
| Lakers | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | FG | 3-PT FG | FT | +/- |
| LeBron James | 23 | 5 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 9-19 | 1-4 | 4-5 | -7 |
| Jake LaRavia | 7 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 2-5 | 2-2 | 1-2 | -15 |
| Deandre Ayton | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2-5 | 0-0 | 0-0 | -14 |
| Marcus Smart | 10 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4-10 | 1-5 | 1-1 | -1 |
| Luka Doncic | 32 | 11 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 11-27 | 3-13 | 7-10 | -17 |
| Rui Hachimura | 12 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 5-11 | 2-7 | 0-0 | +6 |
| Jarred Vanderbilt | 7 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3-5 | 1-1 | 0-0 | +16 |
| Drew Timme | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | +4 |
| Jaxson Hayes | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3-4 | 0-0 | 0-0 | -4 |
| Gabe Vincent | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1-2 | 1-1 | 0-0 | -8 |
| Maxi Kleber | DNP | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Dalton Knecht | DNP | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Kobe Bufkin | DNP | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Bronny James | DNP | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Clippers | PTS | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | FG | 3-PT FG | FT | +/- |
| Kawhi Leonard | 24 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 9-19 | 3-7 | 3-3 | +1 |
| John Collins | 13 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5-7 | 1-3 | 2-2 | +18 |
| Ivica Zubac | 18 | 19 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7-13 | 0-0 | 4-4 | +15 |
| James Harden | 18 | 7 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 6-21 | 2-6 | 4-4 | +13 |
| Kris Dunn | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2-4 | 0-2 | 0-0 | +12 |
| Nicolas Batum | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0-3 | 0-3 | 0-0 | -5 |
| Brook Lopez | 10 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4-6 | 2-4 | 0-0 | -9 |
| Jordan Miller | 14 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3-5 | 1-2 | 7-8 | -8 |
| Kobe Sanders | 11 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 4-6 | 3-4 | +3 |
| Patrick Baldwin Jr. | DNP | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Ty Ty Washington Jr. | DNP | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Cam Christie | DNP | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Yanic Konan Niederhauser | DNP | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Kobe Brown | DNP | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
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