Doncic, Reaves shine anew as Lakers win back-to-back after romp of Spurs
Luka Doncic had 21 points, 14 assists and nine rebounds, Austin Reaves added 30 points and the Los Angeles Lakers extended their home winning streak to eight games with a 125-109 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Monday (Tuesday, March 18, Manila time).
Jordan Goodwin and Dorian Finney Smith each scored 15 points and Dalton Knecht had 13 for the Lakers (42-25), who were without LeBron James (groin) for the fifth consecutive game and Rui Hachimura (knee) for the 10th straight contest. Jaxson Hayes finished with nine points and 11 rebounds.
Tied for fourth place in the Western Conference, Los Angeles has earned back-to-back wins since returning from an 0-4 road trip.
Stephon Castle scored 23 points and grabbed eight rebounds and Devin Vassell had 17 points and eight boards for the Spurs, who lost for the fifth time in their past seven games.
San Antonio is without Victor Wembanyama (shoulder) and De’Aaron Fox (finger) for the remainder of the season.
Jeremy Sochan scored 15 points and Kelson Johnson had 11 for the Spurs (28-29). The Monday contest was rescheduled after the slated Jan. 11 game at Los Angeles was postponed because of deadly wildfires.
The Lakers trailed 9-2 in the early going before taking charge. Los Angeles held a 32-22 lead after one quarter as Doncic had 12 points and was 7-for-7 at the free-throw line.
The Lakers built their advantage to 65-51 at halftime by shooting 52.5 percent. Doncic had 16 points at the half, while Los Angeles had just two turnovers.
The hosts pulled away with a 21-6 run in the third quarter to take a 28-point lead and were up 94-75 entering the fourth.
The Spurs bridged the third and fourth quarters with a 15-0 run to pull within 94-81 with 11:19 remaining on a 3-pointer from Julian Champagnie. Reaves then went on a personal 5-0 run to put the Lakers up by 18 with 10:22 on the clock.
Tempers flared with 6:27 remaining and Los Angeles holding a 107-93 lead when the Lakers’ Jarred Vanderbilt and the Spurs’ Sochan got into a shoving match. Both were ejected after they received fighting technical fouls.
Reaves reached 30 points for the sixth time this season on a layup with 2:30 left to give Los Angeles a 120-102 advantage. – Rappler.com