On Thursday night, the Lakers played host against their Staples Center co-tenants, the Los Angeles Clippers who came into the matchup with a five-game winning streak.
Despite reports speculating Jordan Farmar taking over the starting point guard role, Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni decided to stick with Kendall Marshall. The Lakers were down another man as Jordan Hill was ruled out for the game with sore knee.
First Quarter
Jodie Meeks starting the scoring for the Lakers with a drive to the rim. Kent Bazemore continued his defensive play and blocked a Darren Collison layup.
The Lakers made an effort to get Pau Gasol involved early scoring 10 of the Lakers’ first 15 points and even took the ball coast to coast following a steal. The Lakers played some strong defense and eventually took a 20-13 lead while forcing the Clippers to commit 6 turnovers.
After a Laker timeout, the Clippers responded with a 14-0 run until Robert Sacre hit a jumper with 1:37 left in the quarter. Xavier Henry hit a running jumper to end the quarter to make the score 27-29 in favor of the Clippers. The Lakers shot 45.5 percent from the field and allowed the Clippers to shot 52.4 percent.
Second Quarter
The Lakers rebounding issues continued as the Clippers got two baskets on second chance opportunities early in the quarter. The Clippers eventually extended their lead to 37-29 before Ryan Kelly hit a free throw.
With the Lakers struggling, Bazemore and Meeks returned to the game at the 8:37 mark. The Clippers continued their hot shooting and brought their lead to 27 behind a barrage of jump shots and a D’Andre Jordan ally oops. The Lakers cold streak ended with 4:00 left in the half when Pau Gasol hit a jumper over Jordan.
The Lakers could not find a way to stop the Clippers and allowed them to score 43 in the quarter. The half ended with the Lakers down 40-73. Pau Gasol was the lone Laker in double digits with 16 points, while four Clippers scored more than ten.
Third Quarter
Lakers started the second-half with a two turnovers from the first minute of the game. The Clippers continued to capitalize each chance they with a lob from Chris Paul to Deandre Jordan to extend the lead to 81-42. Pau Gasol would answer back with a layup and trip to the charity strike ending the run.
Xavier Henry checked in the game at 8:42 in the third with a three-pointer to answer back from the deficit. The Clippers defense was persistent throughout the third with five steals and they out rebounded the Lakers 20-14. The third quarter woes continued with the Clippers shooting 60 percent from the field increasing their lead to 49.
Fourth Quarter
In the final quarter, the Clippers turned the ball over twice giving newly acquired Lakers Marshon Brooks and Kent Bazemore layups in return. Ryan Kelly makes a mid-range field goal giving him seven points and six rebounds. Pau Gasol would not re-enter the game as the lead remained at 40 favoring the Clippers. Gasol would finish with 21 points and seven rebounds. Both teams bench players continued to trade buckets on both ends, but the Lakers would lose by a drastic margin with a final score of 142-94.
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