On the night the Los Angeles Dodgers drew first blood in their World Series duel against the New York Yankees, Anthony Davis, Austin Reaves, and the LA Lakers mounted a gutsy comeback at home.
Davis had another 30-point outing, Reaves added 26, and the Purple and Gold squad rallied in the second half to frustrate the Phoenix Suns, 123-116.
Lakers win
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) October 26, 2024
Dodgers win
Friday night in Los Angeles 💜 pic.twitter.com/uQjlb6uu30
After dropping 36 points in their season-opening win against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Davis fired 35 markers, seven rebounds, and four assists as LA improved to a 2-0 start this season.
LEBRON TO AD... Their 2020 🏆 teammate Dwight Howard is loving it! pic.twitter.com/tVq42Gjg4V
— NBA (@NBA) October 26, 2024
Reaves flourished not only on offense but also in involving his teammates, dishing out eight assists alongside four rebounds and five triples.
AR for threeeeee pic.twitter.com/dZXOhBYTcs
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) October 26, 2024
The Lakers erased the Suns’ 22-point halftime lead behind a strong 35-24 third quarter to take a slim 87-85 lead. LeBron James came alive in that period and dropped 11 points alone.
Back-to-back LeBron threes 👌👌@Lakers cut it to 1 early in the 3Q!#KiaTipOff24 on ESPN pic.twitter.com/rWOS4O2a8K
— NBA (@NBA) October 26, 2024
LA extended their advantage to double digits at 98-88 early in the fourth after a Jaxson Hayes lay-up with 9:15 ticks left.
After a Tyus Jones triple nudged the Suns closer at 95-101, back-to-back threes from Reaves and D’Angelo Russell pushed the Lakers’ lead back to twin digits, 107-95, with 6:03 seconds left.
Austin Reaves is up to 26 pts 🔥😤
— ESPN Los Angeles (@ESPNLosAngeles) October 26, 2024
The #LakeShow lead 107-95 with 6 mins left in the 4th Q?? pic.twitter.com/QUNdDQPzPw
James finished with 21 points, including 17 in the second half, alongside four rebounds and eight assists.
It was LBJ and Suns’ star Kevin Durant’s 41st head-to-head meeting in their storied careers, with James holding a 19-5 advantage in the regular-season series but the latter taking a 9-5 edge in the postseason.
LeBron, KD, Harden and Russ still holding it down 💪 pic.twitter.com/RDSSWOfFvJ
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) October 26, 2024
After hitting just five threes in the first half, Los Angeles knocked down nine more in the final two quarters and had 14 overall.
Meanwhile, Durant led Phoenix with 30 points while Devin Booker had 23 markers in their first loss of the season. Bradley Beal added 15 points and nine dimes while Tyus Jones collected 14.
The Suns rode a sizzling shooting from deep early, hitting 12 first-half threes and their superstar trio in Durant, Booker and Beal combining for 37 points.
TOUGH bucket, KD.
— NBA (@NBA) October 26, 2024
He's 5-8 in the first half on ESPN... @Suns lead 56-46.#KiaTipOff24 pic.twitter.com/8H9D8c0UkM
However, they cooled off in the second half, hitting five threes and their 26 fouls allowed the Lakers to attempt 39 total free throws and made 29.
Next up for LA are the Sacramento Kings while the Suns aim to bounce back against the Dallas Mavericks.
