The Los Angeles Lakers have taken the lead in the first round series against the Phoenix Suns. In the 109:95 victory in game 3, the defense is convincing again – and an increasingly better star duo.
Anthony Davis led the Lakers again with 34 points (11/22 FG) and 11 rebounds, LeBron James had 21 (9/19) and 9 assists (but also 7 turnover). Dennis Schröder added 20 points to the win, but the Lakers’ greatest trump card in their first playoff home win at the Staples Center since 2012 was once again the defense.
Apart from Deandre Ayton (22, 11/15, 11 rebounds), the entire Suns team had massive problems getting points effectively. Devin Booker needed 19 throws (6 hits) for his 19 points, Chris Paul was still visibly restricted by his shoulder injury and hardly threw (7 points, 6 assists, 3/8). Cameron Payne was the most dangerous Suns guard in this game with 15 points (6/10).
The game began curiously: Lakers coach Frank Vogel took his challenge after 15 seconds to investigate a foul by Davis. The game was interrupted, the foul persisted. You probably didn’t want to start that way, but then things quickly picked up speed on both sides. Booker got off to a good start with 9 points, on the other hand Davis in particular was aggressively in the game from the start (10 in the first quarter), although he took an elbow from Ayton in the face in the rebound duel. 28:27 Phoenix.
At the beginning of the second section, the Suns left a few opportunities to break away, instead the Lakers took the lead in the minutes without Ayton and Booker on the court. But they weren’t in the rhythm either, both teams barely got any points on the scoreboard for several minutes. The defensive intensity was high, but so was the error rate. In the final minute, Caldwell-Pope hit a transition layup and then added after his own offensive rebound. 43:40 for the Lakers after a tough quarter.
LeBron James and Anthony Davis dominate in the 2nd half
A 6-0 run by the Lakers through LeBron and Davis quickly forced Monty Williams to the next time-out, his team missed ten throws in a row across quarters before Ayton sank one again. But the Lakers were now clearly on the trigger, let the Suns hardly breathe and in turn kept coming back to the basket. James graduated powerfully in transition, Schröder increased to +16 before Johnson scored from outside. KCP injured his knee and needed treatment, but there was still Davis, who all scored the next 9 Lakers points. 76:63 before the last quarter.
A 15-2 run made things clear in the fourth quarter, especially James turned it up again and seemed to have a lot of fun with the direct duel against Crowder. The lead grew to 21 points, but Phoenix could not be completely shaken off. 4:16 from the end, another three from Payne, who scored 9 points in a row, was only 12 points apart.
2 Lakers turnovers and a layup from Booker later it was only 9, then Schröder answered again, on the other side Crowder finally hit his first three. A minute and a half before the end there was only a difference of 8 points. So LA made it more exciting than necessary, but in the end hit the required free throws. With Booker, who pushed Schröder during the layup attempt, and Crowder fouled two Suns in the final minute.
Game 4 of the series will also take place in Los Angeles on Sunday evening at 9:30 p.m. German time (live on DAZN).
The most important statistics
Los Angeles Lakers (7) vs. Phoenix Suns (2) 109:95 (BOXSCORE), Serie: 2-1
- The Lakers played a very tough first half offensively: there were eleven turnovers after 24 minutes, and they only hit 3/16 from the triple line (Phoenix: 4/13). Nevertheless, it was enough for a narrow lead because they were mainly physically present – the rebound duel went quite clearly to the Lakers with 29:19, and they also dominated the zone points (26:16).
- Both teams only achieved 28 points in the second quarter. It was the playoff quarter with the fewest points since 2015: At that time, Cleveland and Atlanta scored a combined 26 points (via basketball-reference).
- The Lakers became offensively stronger after the break with the same recipe, so they continued their dominance in the immediate vicinity of the basket and added another 26 zone points in the third quarter alone (58:38 in total). It was so insignificant that they stayed cold outside for the entire game (7/28) and made 20 turnover.
- This was mainly due to the weak shooting of the Suns – although they had advantages from outside in comparison (11/29). Rather, it was the two-point area that hurt them. The Lakers put so much pressure on Booker in particular that he barely got a good finish from his beloved middle distance. Paul rarely looked for his own degree, CP3 has not taken a litter from the triple line since his injury.
Lakers vs. Suns: The voices of the game
LeBron James (Lakers) on his first playoff game for the Lakers in his home hall: “It is always something special to play in front of the Lakers fans. Hopefully more people can get into the hall as the series progresses.”
Monty Williams (Coach Suns): “We just couldn’t get any throws and that frustrated us. It’s a series, it’s 2 to 1. We still have a lot of basketball ahead of us.”
The star of the game: Anthony Davis
He was invisible in Game 1, and since then Davis has matured again to become a dominant figure, both offensively and defensively. As a scorer, he cannot be controlled, defensively the key to the Lakers’ incredibly impressive defense, especially in the second and third quarters – even as a foursome.
The flop of the game: Jae Crowder
The forward is known to be streaky, which can go either way, and that is an inopportune time for his team to experience. Crowder has hit 2/21 from the triple line so far in the series, in this game it was 1/7, and several of them were quite open. With such odds from a central performer, no series can be won against the champion.
The scene of the game
James found his way into the game better and better in the course of the second half and pulled a lot more to the basket than in the previous games. As the rhythm increased, he made it look like he was playing with his opponents – especially with Crowder. When he isolated against it and snaked past him for a reverse layup, the Staples Center exploded for good.
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