ANTHONY Davis amassed 34 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists as the Los Angeles Lakers earned a 109-102 victory over the host Phoenix Suns on Tuesday (Wednesday in Manila) to even their first-round Western Conference playoff series at one game each.
LeBron James contributed 23 points and nine assists for the Lakers, who held off a late Suns rally to rebound from a 99-90 defeat in Game 1. Los Angeles’ Dennis Schroder added 24 points, and Andre Drummond had 15 points and 12 rebounds.
Devin Booker scored 31 points for the Suns, and Deandre Ayton had 22 points and 10 rebounds. Both players made their playoff debut in Game 1.
Chris Paul scored six points on 2-of-5 shooting from the field for Phoenix while appearing to favor a right shoulder injury that occurred in the opener. Paul played 23 minutes, while Cameron Payne played 33 minutes of point guard off the bench and racked up 19 points and a team-high seven assists.
Game 3 in the best-of-seven series is scheduled for Thursday (Friday in Manila) in Los Angeles.
The Lakers’ answer in Game 2 was reminiscent of the first round of the 2020 playoffs, when Los Angeles scored fewer than 100 points in a playoff-opening loss to the Portland Trail Blazers and then won Game 2. The Lakers did not lose another game in that first round and went on to win the title.
After starting slowly in Game 1, the Lakers came out with a more determined pace Tuesday and took a 53-47 lead into halftime. The Lakers shot just 42.6 percent in the first half but took 14 more shots than the Suns thanks in part to a 8-1 advantage on offensive rebounds.
In other games, it was the Mavs 127, Clippers 121; and Nets 130, Celtics 108.
Mavs 127, Clippers 121
Luka Doncic blew past Los Angeles defenders for 39 points, seven assists and seven rebounds, leading the visiting Mavericks to a victory over the Clippers and a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference first-round playoff series.
Doncic’s second straight 30-plus-point game leaves the Mavericks in a commanding position as the best-of-seven series heads back to Dallas for Game 3 on Friday and Game 4 on Sunday.
Tim Hardaway Jr. added 28 points, Kristaps Porzingis 20 and Maxi Kleber 13 for Dallas.
Kawhi Leonard led the Clippers with 41 points. Paul George contributed 28 points, 12 rebounds and six assists, and Reggie Jackson added 15 points.
Nets 130, Celtics 108
Kevin Durant scored 26 points and Joe Harris added 25 as Brooklyn seized control early and cruised to a 2-0 series lead over Boston in Game 2 of their Eastern Conference first-round series.
Harris hit seven of 10 3-point tries to tie the franchise record for 3-pointers in a playoff game set by Deron Williams in 2015. Durant added eight rebounds, five assists and four blocked shots and made 8 of 12 shots as the Nets shot 52.3 percent and hit 17 3-pointers.
James Harden contributed 20 points and seven of Brooklyn’s 31 assists. Former Celtic Kyrie Irving finished with 15 and Blake Griffin chipped in 11 as no Brooklyn starter played more than 29 minutes. — Field Level Media
