Quentin Grimes scored 23 points and the Los Angeles Lakers used a dominant second quarter to beat the LA Clippers 103-87 at Intuit Dome on Wednesday. The win pushed the Lakers to 4-1 while the Clippers fell to 1-3.
Los Angeles outscored the Clippers 31-16 in the second quarter to turn a tight game into a double-digit lead, and the Lakers never trailed by the fourth. Keaton Wagler led the Clippers with 21 points, but Darius Garland finished a minus-11 in 26 minutes as LA Clippers shooters struggled against a Lakers defense that forced 24 turnovers.
Key Moments: Second-Quarter Surge Decides It
The first quarter stayed close, with the Lakers taking a 25-22 edge after Grimes capped the frame with a running dunk. The separation came in the second quarter. A 10-0 Lakers run featuring back-to-back Matisse Thybulle three-pointers and a Collin Sexton triple pushed the lead to 48-33 by the 3:42 mark, and Los Angeles carried a 56-38 advantage into halftime.
The Clippers never got closer than 10 points the rest of the way. Los Angeles took a 23-point lead at its peak, the largest of the night, while LA Clippers’ biggest lead all game was just five points. The Lakers also piled up 24 fast-break points to the Clippers’ six, turning live-ball turnovers into easy buckets.
Top Performers
Grimes led all scorers with 23 points on 7-of-15 shooting, adding five assists, four steals and three turnovers in 38 minutes. Austin Reaves added 16 points and eight assists, and Thybulle came off the bench to hit 4 of 5 three-pointers for 15 points. Jake LaRavia grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds, and Walker Kessler added 11 points and nine boards.
For the Clippers, Wagler’s 21 points topped the box score, while Derrick Jones Jr. finished with 15 points, five rebounds and four steals. Garland tallied 14 points and five assists but shot just 4 of 12 from the field. Baba Miller led the Clippers with seven rebounds but scored only four points on a minus-9 night.
What It Means
The Lakers sit atop the Pacific Division at 4-1, a half-game ahead of Golden State and two and a half games up on the Clippers, according to the official standings. Los Angeles has now won the season series 2-0 against its crosstown rival. The Clippers, meanwhile, have dropped three straight and sit fourth in the division at 1-3.
Los Angeles shot 44% from the field compared to the Clippers’ 35%, and out-rebounded LA Clippers 48-41, including a 17-12 edge on the offensive glass that led to extra scoring chances. Those extra possessions, combined with a 24-6 fast-break scoring gap, proved decisive in a game the Lakers led for all but the opening minutes.
What’s Next
The Lakers next look to build on their hot start as they continue the early season on their current win streak, which stands at one game. The Clippers will try to snap a three-game skid as they search for their first back-to-back wins of the season. Neither team’s next opponent or date was included in the official data.
Los Angeles enters the stretch having already beaten the Clippers twice this season, a result that follows the Lakers’ recent rematch win over LA Clippers without Luka Doncic, who was ruled out ahead of Wednesday’s game. The win also comes days after Los Angeles fell to Portland 136-129 and after a blowout 132-123 win over Utah fueled by Doncic’s 52 points. The Lakers previously edged the Clippers in an early-season matchup detailed in the Clippers vs Lakers preview before Wednesday’s rematch.
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