Lakers Run Past Clippers 103-87 as Turnovers Pile Up for Inglewood Side

The Lakers did not have Luka Doncic on Tuesday night, but the Clippers' habit of giving the ball away proved a larger problem than his absence. LA beat its Inglewood neighbors 103-87 at Intuit Dome, running its record to 4-1 while the Clippers fell to 1-3.

The game turned in the second quarter. LA outscored the Clippers 31-16 in the period, including a 16-0 run, and carried a 56-38 lead into halftime. The Lakers added to that cushion after the break, closing the third quarter on a 27-15 surge that pushed the margin to 85-66. Collin Sexton scored 11 straight points during that stretch, hitting back-to-back 3-pointers. The Lakers led by 18 at the half after two Sexton free throws with four seconds left. The Clippers cut the gap to seven early in the third quarter with a 12-2 run, then watched LA pull away again. The Lakers' lead reached 23 points midway through the fourth quarter.

Turnovers drove the result. The Clippers gave the ball up 24 times, after committing 26 in each of their previous two games. Tyronn Lue, the Clippers coach, said the team had to address that. "We got to do a better job of taking care of the basketball," Lue said. "To have 26 turnovers in back-to-back games is way too much, especially when we don't have a lot of room for error. Our guys understand that." The Clippers entered the night averaging 23.3 turnovers per game, the league's highest figure; no other team was averaging more than 19.5. Four turnovers came in the first four minutes. Darius Garland committed five of the team's total. Lue called the early mistakes "deflating." The Clippers shot 26 for 74 from the field (35%) and 10 for 31 from 3-point range (32%).

The Lakers played without Doncic, who sat with back tightness, and without forward Ziaire Williams, who was held out with foot soreness. Austin Reaves scored 16 points and handed out eight assists while shooting 6 for 16 from the field and 1 for 6 from deep. He had 28 points in the teams' previous meeting last week. Reaves came in averaging 26.5 points. Doncic's averages stand at 36 points, 6.8 rebounds and 8.6 assists. Five other Lakers reached double figures, led by Quentin Grimes with 23 points, five assists and four steals, and Sexton with 21 points. Matisse Thybulle added 15 points on 4-of-5 shooting from 3-point range, Sandro Mamukelashvili had 13 points and eight rebounds, and Walker Kessler finished with 11 points and nine rebounds. The Lakers shot 44% (35 for 79) overall and 29% (9 for 31) from deep.

Rebounding shaped the second half. The Lakers pulled down 48 boards to the Clippers' 41, with 17 on the offensive glass. JJ Redick, the Lakers coach, called that figure "phenomenal." Jake LaRavia grabbed 10 rebounds, five of them offensive, with three steals. Mamukelashvili added four offensive boards. Redick noted the extra possessions generated those rebounds. The Lakers held Brook Lopez in check and turned that into turnovers, he said.

The Clippers are missing six players from their rotation. Keaton Wagler led the team with 21 points, going 10 for 12 at the line, and closed the third quarter with a half-court buzzer-beater. Derrick Jones Jr. added 15 points, five rebounds and four steals. Garland had 14 points on 4-of-12 shooting. "We're trying to make the right plays. I think we're just playing a little too fast," Garland said. "I think once we slow down, get a rhythm, get the chemistry down we will be fine." Lue said his team cannot afford lapses against top opponents. "Sometimes you're going to have bad breaks, but we had a lot of unforced turnovers that we could take care of and have control over, but we didn't do a good job of taking care of the basketball," Lue said. The Lakers beat Portland 139-126 on Tuesday before this game; Redick said the team "responded in a nice way" after that loss.