Just one day after a shocking lopsided victory over the rival Clippers, the Lakers were back at it again Wednesday night in Golden State. Laker fans had to be pleased with the productivity of new signees Jordan Farmar and Xavier Henry. With a relatively old roster and players such as Steve Nash, their energy level is obviously questionable on the second day of a back-to-back. In this situation, however, after the starters played zero minutes in a bench-dominated fourth quarter, rest should be less of a question. As preventative measures to prevent injuries, Steve Nash did miss the game however.
First Quarter. The Lakers came out with Jodie Meeks, Steve Blake, Nick Young, Shawne Williams, and Pau Gasol. The Lakers did not get off to an ideal start as they started with three misses including two airballs while the Warriors came out firing. Golden State’s distinct ability to hit from downtown was exemplified by Klay Thompson early in the quarter. L.A.’s first score came on a swish from Nick Young, trying to rebound from a poor shooting performance yesterday. The Warriors were clicking offensively with consecutive hits from Curry and Thompson while the Lakers focused on pounding the ball inside. After yet another three from Thompson, Golden State had jumped to an early 12-6 advantage. The lead quickly jumped to eight for Golden State as the pace had escalated quickly. As Nick Young and the Lakers continued to force shots the Warriors continually drained them and stretched the lead to 21-10. The teams traded baskets for the remainder of the quarter and after one, the Lakers trailed 26-16.
Second Quarter. The Lakers opened the second period looking to cut into what was already a ten point Warriors lead. The first score of the quarter went to the Lakers with free throws from Xavier Henry cutting the lead to eight. While the Warrior offense began to slow down, poor defense allowed them to stretch the lead to fourteen. Jodie Meeks and Jordan Hill provided the only sporadic spurts of offense while Pau Gasol still sat on the bench. A three from Meeks with 7:30 remaining pulled L.A. back within fourteen however Golden State would respond. Both teams returned with their starters at the seven minute mark and Klay Thompson immediately stuck a jumper pushing the lead to sixteen. A three from Curry made it 44-25 forcing a timeout from Mike D’Antoni. The Lakers continued to throw up bricks from outside while the Warriors stayed red hot in their home opener and the lead ballooned up over twenty. Golden State led 50-30 with three minutes to go as the Lakers desperately attempted to make a run. Any attempts at a run were futile, though, as Klay Thompson simply refused to cool down from behind the arc. After a pathetic second quarter, the Warriors led 59-40.
Third Quarter. After being dominated by Golden State in the first half, the Lakers came out looking to start fast in the second half. David Lee started off the quarter with a make before a three point play from Nick Young pulled the Lakers within eighteen. Gaping holes in the defense, however, gave the Warriors the opportunity to stretch the lead back above twenty. A three pointer from Steve Blake got the Laker deficit down to seventeen as L.A. began to think about making a run. Steph Curry picked up his fourth foul with over eight minutes to go however the Lakers could not break the seventeen point barrier. Turnovers from both teams kept the score even for a while before a three from Curry at the seven minute mark pushed the lead back to 24. After trading baskets for several minutes, the Laker offense became continually stifled and a comeback seemed doubtful. With just under five minutes to go and the crowd in an absolute frenzy, the Warrior lead has swelled all the way to 83-56. Draymond Green joined the party for Golden State as his strike from downtown gave them a 30 point lead. To make it worse, Klay Thompson reached his career high at 33 points in the third quarter as the Warriors led 90-58. By the end of the quarter the deficit was massive and the score was 96-63 in favor of Golden State.
Fourth Quarter. The Lakers began the fourth quarter trailing by 33 and with not much to play for. Both the starters and reserves had been outmatched. Mike D’Antoni began the quarter playing Jordan Farmar, Steve Blake, Jordan Hill, Xavier Hnery, and Jordan Hill. Wesley Johnson began the quarter on a strong note for the Lakers with a three pointe but the Warriors were quick to respond in transition. Johnson nailed another corner three to cut the deficit to 29. The Laker team that had put up over 100 points yesterday stood at only 71 in the fourth quarter. One positive from the fourth quarter was that the Laker second unit continued to hustle and play hard despite being so far behind. A third three from Johnson in the quarter was a highlight for the purple and gold. The Lakers moved to 1-1 with their next game against the Spurs on Friday. The final score was 125-94.
