After a strong start to the road trip, the Los Angeles Lakers have struggled to the tune of three straight losses with key players being in and out of the lineup.
The Lakers had a chance to end the road trip with a .500 record on Sunday night when they took on the Pistons, and they were able to get it done with a 124-117 victory.
L.A. got off to a hot start led by Lonnie Walker IV, who hit a pair of 3s and finished a layup in transition. LeBron James also got in on the action with a 3-pointer, giving the Lakers a 13-5 lead into the first timeout.
The Lakers built up an early double-digit lead but they saw up close what potential trade target Bojan Bogdanovic can do as he had seven early points to keep Detroit in it.
Russell Westbrook was active as always after entering midway through the quarter, making his first three shots to go along with four first-quarter assists to give the Lakers a 32-26 lead at the end of the frame.
James got going offensively to begin the second with Westbrook finding him for a pair of easy buckets. Davis then jumped in on the action too, making an overall impact with some steals, rebounds and finishes at the rim.
After Austin Reaves beat the second-quarter buzzer with a 3, the Lakers took a 61-49 lead into the halftime locker room.
Davis came out like a man on a mission in the third quarter, scoring nine straight points for the Lakers. On the other side though, Bogdanovic was just as hot as he made four triples in a row to keep the Pistons within striking distance. In fact, he continued to stay hot through the end of the third quarter where the Pistons got all the way within one at 91-90.
Bogdanovic finished with 21 points in the third quarter alone while Davis was not far behind at 17.
After staying quiet for most of the middle periods, Walker got going again to start the fourth with a pair of 3s to extend the lead to seven. Saddiq Bey answered though as the Pistons continued their hot shooting from deep, which kept them in the game late.
It was about midway through the period when the Lakers appeared to take control. Reaves hit another 3 while James started attacking the rim and getting to the free throw line.
The Pistons would have one last run in them though to get within two after a pair of layups by Jaden Ivey and one by Bogdanovic due to the Lakers’ inability to get a rebound. Reaves put the comeback attempt to bed with a dagger 3 though, securing the victory to end the road trip.
James and Davis led the way for L.A., each scoring 30-plus points. James had 35 points to go along with five rebounds and five assists while Davis had a monster game with 34 points, 15 rebounds, seven assists, two steals and a block.
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