Kuzma, Lakers coast to victory over Kings
Banged-up Los Angeles takes control early
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Kyle Kuzma scored 10 of his season-high 30 points in the fourth quarter as the short-handed Los Angeles Lakers thumped the Sacramento Kings 115-94 on Friday.
Dennis Schroder had 17 points and eight assists for the Lakers, who bounced back from a 15-point loss to Milwaukee two nights earlier. Kentavious Caldwell-pope added 13 points and 10 rebounds and Markieff Morris 14 points and eight rebounds.
Already without Lebron James, Anthony Davis and newly signed center Andre Drummond, the Lakers lost reserve guard Wesley Matthews to injury in the first quarter.
It hardly mattered. Los Angeles led by 13 in the first and stayed comfortably in front the rest of the way.
Harrison Barnes had 26 points, five rebounds and five assists for the Kings. De’aaron Fox, recently selected West’s player of the week, scored 12 points on 5-for-20 shooting.
■ Bucks 127, Trail Blazers 109:
At Portland, Ore., Giannis Antetokounmpo had 47 points and 12 rebounds for Milwaukee, which halted Portland’s four-game win streak with its sixth straight win over the Blazers.
■ Jazz 113, Bulls 106: At Salt
Lake City, Donovan Mitchell scored 26 points for Utah, which was outscored 68-40 in the paint but notched its eighth straight win and franchise-record 21st consecutive home victory.
■ Raptors 130, Warriors 77: At Tampa, Fla., Pascal Siakam scored 36 points over three quarters for Toronto in the season’s most lopsided result and the biggest blowout win in Raptors history.
■ Suns 140, Thunder 103: At Phoenix, Devin Booker scored 32 points for Phoenix, which led 43-13 after a first quarter in which Oklahoma City missed 21 of 25 shots. The Suns won their fifth in a row.
■ Hawks 126, Pelicans 103: At New Orleans, Bogdan Bogdanovic had 26 points to lead seven double-figure scorers for Atlanta, which led 55-54 at halftime before a season-best 37-point third quarter.
■ Celtics 118, Rockets 102: At Boston, Robert Williams was one of four Boston scorers with at least 20 points, notching a career-high 20 on 9-for-9 shooting with nine rebounds and eight assists.
■ Grizzlies 120, Timberwolves 108: At Memphis, Tenn., Jonas Valanciunas had 19 points and 11 rebounds to lead eight double-figure scorers for Memphis, which went on a 35-9 fourth-quarter run.
■ Hornets 114, Pacers 97: At Indianapolis, reserve Miles Bridges scored 16 of his season-high 23 points in the second quarter and paced seven double-figure scorers for Charlotte.
■ Mavericks 99, Knicks 86: At New York, Luka Doncic scored 26 points for Dallas, which was without coach Rick Carlisle (positive COVID-19 test) but won its third in a row.