Basketball

LeBron James Tops 39,000 Points as Lakers Rout Jazz

AP Photo/Ryan Sun
Los Angeles Lakers forward Rui Hachimura (28) looks down after dunking in front of Utah Jazz guard Talen Horton-Tucker (5) during the second half of an NBA basketball In-Season Tournament game, Nov. 21, 2023, in Los Angeles.

Reuters

15:34 JST, November 22, 2023

Anthony Davis had 26 points and 16 rebounds and the Los Angeles Lakers finished unbeaten in group play of the NBA in-season tournament with a 131-99 victory against the visiting Utah Jazz on Tuesday night.

D’Angelo Russell had 20 points and eight assists and LeBron James contributed 17 points, nine assists and seven rebounds for the Lakers, who joined the Indiana Pacers as the first two teams to advance to the quarterfinal knockout round.

Los Angeles shot 57 percent from the field and its bench took advantage of the blowout to score 64 points, led by Austin Reaves with 19 and Christian Wood with 16.

Omer Yurtseven scored 18 points off the bench and John Collins led the starters with 15 points for Utah, which fell to 2-2 in group play.

James scored seven points to help the Lakers to an 11-7 lead and make him the first NBA player to reach 39,000 points in league history.

He subbed out with a 15-9 lead and the Lakers continued the 8-0 run to move ahead 20-9.

Reaves, who had subbed in for James, hit a 3-pointer in transition to make it 29-12 and then capped the opening quarter with a high bank shot to make it 32-17 entering the second.

The Jazz started 3 for 17 from 3-point distance and Markkanen was 0-for-5 when he sank a 3 to start a 5-0 run that briefly pulled the Jazz back within single digits at 38-29 with 8:10 left in the half.

James checked back in and Los Angeles scored six straight points to go up by 20 points with 1:40 left in the half. The Lakers took a 62-41 lead into the break.

Hachimura sank treys on back-to-back trips down the floor to extend the lead to 92-63 with 3:14 left in the third quarter.

The Lakers eventually took a 102-75 lead into the fourth, and Utah couldn’t get closer than 23.

James checked out of the game with 4:45 left in the third quarter and Davis with 1:45 remaining in the third and neither returned, allowing them additional rest heading into their second game in two nights on Wednesday against the visiting Dallas Mavericks.