By Jaina Pallasigui
Eagle News Service
LOS ANGELES (Eagle News) — The Los Angeles Lakers faced off against the visiting Memphis Grizzlies in a highly anticipated matchup at the Crypto.com Arena on Friday night, January 20. The Grizzlies had been on a roll, with a franchise-record 11-game winning streak on the line, but the Lakers were determined to put an end to it.
The game got off to a slow start for both teams, with the Grizzlies taking a 53-49 lead into halftime.
The Grizzlies continued to outplay the Lakers, leading 89-81 through three quarters.
They had a significant advantage on the boards, out rebounding the Lakers 63-47, and had a 24-10 advantage on the offensive glass.
The Grizzlies also led 39-22 on second-chance points, making it clear that they were dominating the game.
“[We] spent a lot of time keying in on Ja Morant. We got two guys flying in on him,” said LeBron James when asked about the Grizzlies’ 39 second chance points. “We got [one of the] stronger guys in the NBA, Steven Adams, under there battling those guards, we’d probably lose that battle 100 out of 100 times.”
However, the Lakers were not ready to give up just yet. Led by Russell Westbrook, who scored 29 points, and James, who added 23, the Lakers began to mount a comeback in the fourth quarter. But it was Dennis Schroder who really stepped up for the Lakers in the final moments of the game. Schroder, who scored 19 points, had a steal, a layup, and three free throws in the final 13 seconds to help the Lakers pull out the victory after they had trailed by as many as 13 points late in the third quarter.
The Grizzlies had their chances to tie the game in the final seconds, with Brandon Clarke missing a free throw with 1.2 seconds remaining that would have tied the game.
But even with the Grizzlies having the possession, the Lakers were able to hold their one-point lead and got the win at home.
“I thought they were great. The Lakers, I got to give them a lot of credit. They had tons of guys that played extremely well for them,” said Taylor Jenkins, Grizzlies Head Coach after the loss. “We just didn’t have it tonight in the first half offensively. Our defensive kept us in it and then we just had a complete let down in the second half. They fueled the game with their fans, credit to them. We didn’t respond.”
It was a hard-fought battle, but in the end, the Lakers were able to come out on top and end the Grizzlies’ franchise-record-tying, 11-game winning streak.
(Eagle News Service)