LOS ANGELES, Dec 30 — Anthony Davis had 23 points and nine rebounds as the host Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Dallas Mavericks 108-95 last night at Staples Centre.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 19 points, converting 5 of 9 shots and 4 of 5 3-pointers, off the bench for the Lakers, while Dwight Howard scored all 15 of his points in the first half. On the eve of his 35th birthday, LeBron James finished with 13 points and 13 assists.
Luka Doncic, who entered the contest as the NBA’s third-leading scorer at 29.1 points per game, had 19 points on 5-of-14 shooting to go with seven assists. He was 0 for 6 on 3-pointers. Delon Wright added 14 points off the bench, while Kristaps Porzingis managed 11 points on 4-of-10 shooting.
The Lakers outshot the Mavericks 48.7 per cent to 36 per cent.
The Mavericks got a scare in the second quarter when Doncic crashed to the floor after being fouled by Howard on a drive to the bucket. He left the game with 2:02 remaining in the quarter but returned for the second half.
Dallas wasn’t as fortunate with Tim Hardaway Jr Hardaway left the contest with 5:26 remaining in the first quarter after sustaining a hamstring injury. Hardaway, who had 25 points in the Mavericks’ win at Golden State on Saturday, appeared to have hurt himself after a breakaway dunk. He did not return, finishing with two points on 1-of-5 shooting in seven minutes.
A 3-pointer by Porzingis pulled the Mavericks within 35-31 midway through the second quarter but a 16-7 surge by the Lakers allowed them to take a 51-38 lead after two free throws by James with 2:11 left.
Los Angeles led 54-43 at the break.
The Lakers increased the margin to as much as 17 in the third quarter before taking an 84-69 advantage heading in the fourth.
The Mavericks got no closer than 11 the rest of the way.
The Lakers are 11-4 at home. Dallas dropped to 12-4 on the road. — Reuters
