Lakers Take Down Kings Behind 51 Points From Austin Reaves
The Los Angeles Lakers are already dealing with numerous injuries to start the season, as they’re without LeBron James and Luka Doncic. Trying to stay afloat in the West, the Lakers traveled to Sacramento to take on the Kings. The Lakers were looking for their second straight win on the season, after beating the Timberwolves behind a dominant performance from Luka Doncic.
Lakers Were Carried By Reaves
Heading into this game, Los Angeles was without both of their stars. They needed multiple other players on the roster to step up to stay alive without Doncic and James. It was reported earlier today that Doncic would be missing about a week with a finger sprain and a lower leg contusion. Austin Reaves carried the load, dropping a career-high 51 points. Reaves was unbelievable and was just one assist short of a triple-double. He had 10 rebounds, 2 steals, made over 50% of his shots, and shot 60% from three.
Alongside Reaves, Deandre Ayton and Rui Hachimura combined for 40 points. What killed the Kings in this game was the fouls. The Lakers attempted 46 free throws, making 41 of them. Reaves did an incredible job of stepping up when it mattered most, scoring 15 points in the fourth quarter, killing any momentum the Kings had. The Lakers will head back home to take on the Portland Trail Blazers, as they look to win their third straight game.
Kings Couldn’t Get It Done
Sacramento had good performances from Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan. LaVine led the team in scoring with 32 points, and DeMar was the second highest with 21. They really cost themselves the game, allowing the Lakers to score 41 points on free throws alone. Behind these two, Domantas Sabonis had a double-double in 31 minutes, scoring 10 points and grabbing 14 rebounds. Moving forward, they have to play more disciplined basketball. Los Angeles wasn’t even that efficient on offense tonight, making just eight three-pointers on 35 attempts. The Kings shot 41% from three compared to the Lakers’ 32%.
Russell Westbrook and Malik Monk did well coming off the bench. Westbrook scored 18 points, along with 6 rebounds and 6 assists. Monk had 15 points, along with 2 assists and 1 rebound. The Kings will be back in action tonight against the Oklahoma City Thunder, as they look to improve to 2-2 and get back to .500 on the season.
