Nets fall to Lakers, 116-104, behind 40-points from LeBron James

NEW YORK (AP) — LeBron James had one of the best shooting nights of his illustrious career, going 9 for 10 behind the arc to tie his career high for 3-pointers, and matched a season-high with 40 points to lead the Los Angeles Lakers to a 116-104 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday night.

James had the sellout crowd at Barclays Center standing on its feet as he put the finishing touches on his 3-point shooting display in the fourth quarter. He reached 40 points for the third time this season, most recently on March 16 in a home loss to Golden State.

The Lakers have won five of six since then, and this victory moved them a season-high nine games over .500 with seven games remaining in the regular season. Los Angeles remained ninth in the Western Conference, but the Lakers could catch the Sacramento Kings for eighth or the Phoenix Suns for seventh in the West, taking them out of the single-elimination No.9-vs.-No 10 play-in game.

If James has another game like this in the postseason, just about anything is possible for the NBA’s career scoring leader who continues to amaze at age 39.

The 20-time All-Star finished 13 for 17 overall as the Lakers played the fourth game of a six-game road trip and rebounded from a loss Friday night at Indiana that snapped their five-game winning streak.

Anthony Davis added 24 points and 14 rebounds, and Rui Hachimura had 20 points and 10 rebounds in a game the Lakers led by 20 in the first quarter and controlled throughout. Brooklyn got its deficit inside double digits just once in the second half. Cam Thomas led the Nets with 30 points.

The Lakers got 114 of their 116 points from their starters.

James also made nine 3-pointers Jan. 24, 2023, against the Clippers, shooting 9 for 14. His 90% accuracy was the second-best of his career in games in which he made at least five 3-pointers, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. He was 5 for 5 against Oklahoma City on Dec. 23 of this season.

Brooklyn was 0 for 8 from the field when interim coach Kevin Ollie called his first timeout just over 4 minutes into the first quarter after James grabbed a defensive rebound and hit Davis in stride…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/nets-fall-lakers-116-104-005014144.html

Author : SNY

Publish date : 2024-04-01 00:50:14

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