Lakers snap losing streak with win over Spurs

After some rough losses, the Lakers return to the win column, beating the Spurs on the road.

A balanced offensive attack, with seven players in double figures, contributed to the Lakers snapping their losing streak with a 119-101 win against the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday night.

Anthony Davis and LeBron James both had slow first halves but woke up in the second. AD scored 19 points with 14 rebounds, seven assists and a steal. LeBron had another triple-double with 16 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds.

D’Angelo Russell came out aggressive offensively. He ended the game with 17 points and five assists. Dalton Knecht was reinserted into the starting lineup and scored 20 points with eight rebounds, two assists and a steal.

Max Christie was huge off the bench with 12 points, four rebounds, two assists and a block. Rui Hachimura pitched in with 16 points, five rebounds, two assists and a block.

The Lakers started shaky, but the offense looked better once they got Dalton going. Victor Wembanyama was off to a great start for the Spurs, blocking AD and draining a 3-pointer. Dalton was the first person on the team in double digits with 10 points.

AD was dominating in the rebounding department grabbing six of L.A.’s 12 boards.

Los Angeles’ defense was better, holding the Spurs to 23 points in the quarter. At the end of the first, L.A. was up nine.

L.A. continued their strong play into the second quarter. D’Lo was the second player on the team to enter double digits in scoring with 11 points. He was also nearly perfect from the field with five out of his six shot attempts going in.

D’Lo drained his second 3-pointer of the game and the Lakers were up by 14. San Antonio stepped up their defense and that led to four quick points.

Los Angeles’ defense stepped up again, forcing the Spurs players to take well-contested shots. San Antonio had cut the deficit down to eight, but a buzzer-beating corner 3-pointer by Austin gave the Lakers an 11-point lead into halftime.

The second half opened with Austin stripping Wemby of the ball. That didn’t matter as the Spurs were starting to heat up offensively. They cut the deficit to six. Wemby drilled a wide-open 3-pointer that forced a Lakers timeout to stop the momentum San Antonio was starting to build.

Rui knocked down a much-needed 3-pointer to give the Lakers some cushion in their lead. The second chance opportunities for the Spurs were giving them life. They got to within four.

Los Angeles responded well, with Max Christie knocking down his free throws, while AD and Dalton packed a punch with their scoring. AD was very aggressive, leading to a stronger quarter for him.

Max had a stellar period and was all over the place, scoring dunks, threes and blocking shots. L.A. beat their third-quarter woes and led by 15 at the end.

The Spurs struck first in the final frame with a layup. D’Lo knocked down another 3-pointer to add to his excellent play off the bench.

Julian Champagnie was doing all the scoring for the Spurs to keep them close. He knocked down a three to make it a 10-point game.

San Antonio scored a lot in transition and they were up to 18 fastbreak points. Austin drilled a huge 3-pointer to give the Lakers more cushion in a lead that was winding down with the Spurs trying to come back.

After a rough first half, LeBron and AD awakened in the fourth. LeBron was up to 14 points. The Spurs were not going away, taking advantage of the Lakers breaking down on defense.

Dalton scored five straight points, including a dunk and a 3-pointer, extending the lead to 19, causing the Spurs to wave the white flag and unload their bench with less than four minutes left in the game.

Key Takeaways:

With AD and LeBron having slow starts, we saw other players step up to shoulder the offensive load. It needs to happen more often. Step up when your stars are struggling.

It’s been a rough season for Max, but tonight’s game was a great reminder of his potential.

Dalton’s Rookie of the Year campaign rolls on with another great performance. He certainly appears to have earned his starting spot.

The Lakers’ next game will be Friday against the Oklahoma City Thunder at 7:00 PM PT.

You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.