Field Level Media
Jan 12, 2018
Brandon Ingram scored 26 points, and Lonzo Ball contributed 18 points, 10 rebounds and six assists as the Los Angeles Lakers knocked off the San Antonio Spurs 93-81 on Thursday in Los Angeles.
Larry Nance Jr. added 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Lakers, who won their season-best third consecutive game. Los Angeles forced 20 turnovers and halted a seven-game home losing streak versus San Antonio.
LaMarcus Aldridge scored 20 points for the Spurs, who were without standout small forward Kawhi Leonard (shoulder) for the third straight game. Bryn Forbes added 18 points for San Antonio.
Ingram made 11 of 21 shots while scoring 20 or more points for the third time in the past four games.
"My teammates give me confidence to be in the right spot and make plays," Ingram said in a postgame interview on TNT. "It feels pretty good."
The Lakers racked up 15 steals, including five by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and four by Ball.
Nance delivered a dunk to give the Lakers a 72-62 lead early in the fourth quarter before San Antonio controlled the next four-plus minutes and pulled within 77-75 on a 21-footer by Forbes with 6:23 remaining.
Los Angeles answered by putting the game away. Caldwell-Pope and Nance slammed home back-to-back dunks and Ingram scored consecutive baskets as part of a 13-0 surge to push the Los Angeles advantage to 90-75 with 3:11 to play.
San Antonio recovered from an 11-point halftime lead to take a 53-52 lead on a 3-pointer by Forbes with 6:42 left in the third quarter.
Los Angeles followed with a 16-4 burst with Caldwell-Pope scoring eight of the points, including a 3-pointer to cap the spurt to give the Lakers a 68-57 lead. The Spurs tallied the final five points of the stanza to move within six.
Ingram scored 18 first-half points and Ball added 11 as the Lakers took a 49-38 advantage into halftime.
Los Angeles used a 25-3 spurt to turn a three-point deficit with 3:01 left in the first quarter into a 37-18 lead with 7:16 left in the half. A dunk by Nance ended a run of 17 straight Lakers points to make it 29-15 early in the second quarter, and Ball knocked down a 3-pointer to make it a 19-point margin.
San Antonio answered with a 13-3 push to cut its deficit to nine and later got within 42-36 after a 3-pointer by Pau Gasol with 2:01 left before the break.
--Field Level Media