Brandon Ingram made his intentions clear from the very start: He was planning to
score — a lot.
The 20-year-old provided the Lakers’ first nine points of the night and never
relented, finishing with a career-high 32 points. The inferno allowed Los
Angeles to take the defending champions into overtime, yet Golden State
prevailed, 127-123.
Ingram flashed his jump shot as much as he has all year, hitting 5-of-10 from
outside the paint, including a pair of corner 3-pointers.
That helped open up his trademark drives to the rim. Ingram thrived around the
hoop, shooing 7-of-10 and mixing smooth strides with herky-jerky slashes.
“I’m just going in there with confidence,” Ingram said. “Trying to use my length
over the bigs or the help-side (defenders).”
B.I. drives through the lane and throws it down! #LakeShow (: @SpectrumSN,
@spectdeportes, NBA TV) pic.twitter.com/Ua5RjbKt2A
For as much as his 7-foot-3 wingspan benefitted him against the Warriors (16-6),
so too did his ability to exploit less-mobile bigs.
Six of his baskets came when the Warriors switched defenders, and big men Zaza
Pachulia and Jordan Bell were his most frequent victims.
Those two had little chance of keeping up with Ingram’s giant steps, as he often
blew past them for a layup.
“He was getting downhill on us (and) getting to the rim, and he was very
aggressive,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said.
Go ahead B.I.!! pic.twitter.com/vrIvz9M3Cm
Ingram’s most impressive plays of the night weren’t against lumbering bigs, but
rather two of the NBA’s top wing defenders.
In overtime, he strode past both Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson for layups that
kept the Lakers (8-13) in the game.
When Durant tried to back him down in the waning seconds of overtime, Ingram
poked the ball away and pushed ahead in transition. He drew a foul from Durant
at the rim and hit both free throw attempts to trim L.A.’s deficit to just one
with 15 second left.
“KD’s not only one of the best offensive players in the league; he’s really
tough to score on,” head coach Luke Walton said. “Brandon was up to the
challenge. He made some tough shots.”
Durant was one of Ingram’s basketball idols growing up in Kinston, North
Carolina. However, the sophomore kept his focus on his team during his breakout
night.
“You put all the idol stuff away and try to compete to the best of your
ability,” Ingram said. “There are 15 guys in here. I’m just trying to play for
all of those guys.”
Ingram tops his career-high in points again tonight with 32 against the
Warriors. pic.twitter.com/SQlonKQqKA
Lakers came out to play It took much more than one player for the young Lakers
to contend with the overwhelming title favorites.
Jordan Clarkson (21 points, eight assists) and Lonzo Ball (15 points, 10
assists) made plays for themselves and others. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (21
points) and Julius Randle (20 points) each had moments of electricity.
And, with Ingram leading the way, the Lakers posted 68 points in the paint.
Meanwhile, Walton said it was a point of emphasis to win the turnover battle,
and the Lakers did just that by forcing 22 giveaways.
“They’re the Warriors,” Clarkson said. “If you ain’t playing hard, you’re gonna
get blown out.”
An 18-4 run at the end of the second quarter gave the Lakers a four-point edge
at halftime. But there was still plenty of action left in a game that included
17 ties and 14 lead changes.
Down by two with 1:31 left, Randle’s driving layup tied the game before
Caldwell-Pope’s and-1 floater gave the Lakers a 109-106 lead with 56 seconds to
go.
But Durant (29 points) immediately responded with a game-tying 3-pointer.
Unfortunately for the Lakers, they did not have Randle guarding him on that
play, as he came up with two huge defensive stops on Curry and Durant in the
final 71 seconds.
How about Julius Randle’s defense when switched onto a couple of scoring
champions in crunch time? pic.twitter.com/HiV0nW5bEu
Instead, they had to settle for overtime after Ingram’s layup attempt missed at
the buzzer.
Curry hit two triples to open up the extra period, but the Lakers held strong.
Ingram personally whittled the gap down to a single point, though a missed
rebound in the final seconds forfeited a chance at tying the game.
Lakers fight to the end against Golden State but drop this one in overtime,
127-123. pic.twitter.com/3kf7ry6DPP
Notes Kyle Kuzma (back spasms) was a late scratch. … Curry scored 28 points
and Thompson added 20. … Ingram also had seven turnovers and five fouls. … A
sold-out crowd of 18,997 — including actor Will Ferrell and singer Britney
Spears — filled STAPLES Center.
He’s got the fight. #LakeShow
A post shared by Los Angeles Lakers (@lakers) on Nov 29, 2017 at 10:16pm PST
Player: Brandon Ingram
Player: Julius Randle
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