Lakers’ strong finishing kick too much for Spurs
Davis’ 35 points, James’ triple-double key victory
SAN ANTONIO — The Los Angeles Lakers know they are not always going to feel or play like the defending league champions.
Anthony Davis had 35 points and 11 rebounds, and LEBron James added 26 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists as the Lakers rallied to beat the San Antonio Spurs 109-103 on Friday.
The Lakers closed with a 9-0 run for their second win against the Spurs in three days.
“We persisted through our struggles,” Los Angeles coach Frank Vogel said. “That’s going to happen from time to time. In a 72-game season, you are going to have some wins that are uglier than others.
“We knew coming into this season, with the quick turnaround, there was going to be some ugly nights. The key is to find a way to win when you are not at your best.”
The Lakers found a way to win by attacking the paint late against the youthful core of the Spurs.
San Antonio forward Keldon Johnson blocked James’ layup attempt, but Kyle Kuzma tipped in the follow to put the Lakers up 105-103 with 53.9 seconds left. James followed with a layup, and Davis closed the scoring with two free throws.
“Their game plan tweaked,” Kuzma said. “They added a little bit of a different element for us. We had to adjust down the stretch.”
■ Jazz 106, Clippers 100: At Salt Lake City, Mike Conley hit seven 3-pointers and totaled 33 points and seven assists for Utah, which held Los Angeles to 38.8-percent shooting. Paul
George had 25 points, eight rebounds and six steals for the Clippers, who trailed by 20 in the second half.
■ Bucks 126, Bulls 96: At Milwaukee, Giannis Antetokounmpo had 29 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists for Milwaukee, which made 22 of 45 3-point tries in its 11th straight win over Chicago. The Bulls again were without starter Lauri Markkanen and three others for COVID-19 protocols.
■ Suns 106, Nuggets 103:
At Denver, Chris Paul hit a clutch jumper with 7.3 seconds left after a successful coach’s challenge for Phoenix, which is 5-1 for the first time since 2009
10. Deandre Ayton and Devin Booker each scored 22 points for the Suns, and Paul had 21.
■ Pistons 96, Celtics 93: At Detroit, Jeremi Grant scored 24 points for Detroit, which led by 21 in the first half and by 15 in the third quarter in its first win of the season. Jayson Tatum scored 28 points and Jaylen Brown 25 for Boston, which took its first lead in the fourth quarter.
■ Mavericks 93, Heat 83: At Dallas, Luka Doncic had season highs of 27 points and 14 rebounds in his first double-double of the season for Dallas, which led by 24 in the third quarter. Bam Adebayo scored 19 points for Miami, which missed all 12 of its first-half 3-point tries.
■ Trail Blazers 123, Warriors
98: At San Francisco, Damian Lillard scored 34 points and C.J. Mccollum 28 for Portland, which made 20 of 43 3-point tries. Stephen Curry had 26 points for Golden State, which missed 28 of 35 3-point tries and lost rookie James Wiseman to an ankle sprain.
■ Hawks 114, Nets 96: At New York, De’andre Hunter had 23 points to lead three 20-point scorers for Atlanta, which led 61-52 at halftime and 89-73 entering the fourth quarter. Kevin Durant had 28 points and Kyrie Irving 18 points and 11 rebounds for Brooklyn.
■ Grizzlies 108, Hornets 93: At Charlotte, N.C., Findlay Prep product Dillon Brooks scored 21 points for Memphis, which had seven players out for various health reasons. Bismack Biyombo had 16 points and 12 rebounds for Charlotte, which shot 40.7 percent.
■ Wizards 130, Timberwolves 109: At Minneapolis, Bradley Beal had 31 points and seven assists for Washington, which was without Russell Westbrook (rest) but improved to 1-5. The Wizards had eight double-figure scorers and shot a season-best 55.1 percent.