The Los Angeles Lakers played hard and played solid defense all night; building a seven-point lead with two minutes left in the ball game. But, at the very end, they made mistakes and the Oklahoma City Thunder used to opportunity to mount a comeback and win, 77-75.
We’ll save the quarter-by-quarter breakdown today, and just get straight to it. The Lakers played tremendously on defense, and did most of the things we thought they must do in order to win. However, with the Lakers up by seven points with just two minutes left to go in the game, the Lakers committed costly turnovers and the Thunder, namely Kevin Durant, were able to take advantage.
The Numbers
Kobe Bryant finished with 20 points (on 9-25 shooting), four assists, four steals, three rebounds, and two blocks. Andrew Bynum notched 20 points, nine rebounds, and two blocks while Pau Gasol had 14 points, 11 rebounds, and three assists. Metta World Peace added eight points, five rebounds, three steals, and two assists. Jordan Hill had six points and Steve Blake had five points. Ramon Sessions had just two points and three rebounds as Matt Barnes was scoreless in ten minutes of play.
For the Thunder, Kevin Durant led the way with 22 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and two steals. Russell Westbrook chipped in with 15 points, six rebounds, and four assists while James Harden added 13 points. Serge Ibaka was huge with eight points and seven blocks, and Nick Collison and Thabo Sefolosha had six points and three rebounds each. Derek Fisher added three points, while Kendrick Perkins had just two points and five rebounds.
Now, let’s break down the disappointing loss.
Next Page: The Breakdown