By Adrian Stewart Co
LeBron James came up with clutch hits down the stretch as Los Angeles Lakers pulled off a 107-99 win over Atlanta Hawks in the 2020-2021 NBA Season on Monday night (Tuesday in the Philippines) at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia.
After seeing its 96-86 advantage trimmed to 97-98 by a furious Hawks’ run, James drained a three-pointer for a 101-97 edge before scoring on a fastbreak layup from a steal for a 103-97 edge.
Following consecutive turnovers by Atlanta, James converted four free throws as the defending champions Lakers widened the lead to 107-99 with 16 seconds left.
James finished the match with 21 points, 12 coming in the fourth quarter, to go along with nine assists and seven rebounds as the Lakers improved its record to 16-6.
Anthony Davis top-scored with 25 points, while Montrezl Harrell, former Atlanta guard Dennis Schröder and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope contributed 19, 16 and 11, respectively, for Lakers.
Trae Young finished with double-double 25 points and 16 assists, while John Collins and Clint Capela added 22 and 16 markers, respectively, as the Hawks dropped to 10-10.
Meanwhile, Charlotte Hornets heated up in the overtime period as it walloped Miami Heat, 129-121, at the American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida.
With the score tied at 115-all, the Hornets went on a huge run behind Gordon Hayward and Devonte Graham for a 123-115 edge. Free throws by Malik Monk later sealed the win for Charlotte.
Monk finished the match with career-best 36 points, including nine triples, while Graham chipped in 24 markers as the Hornets improved to 10-11. The Heat slipped to 7-13.
BOX SCORE:
LOS ANGELES 107 – Davis 25, James 21, Harrell 19, Schröder 16, Caldwell-Pope 11, Caruso 8, Kuzma 5, Gasol 2, Horton-Tucker 0.
ATLANTA 99 – Young 25, Collins 22, Capela 16, Huerter 10, Reddish 6, Gallinari 6, Hill 6, Rondo 5, Fernando 3.
Quarterscores: 28-25, 50-46, 75-76, 107-99./ASC, WDJ