Lakers Prevail Over 76ers in an Ugly Game on Home Court

The Los Angeles Lakers returned to the floor on Friday night to play the Philadelphia 76ers, who were missing their reigning MVP Joel Embiid, following a much-needed break.

For the Lakers, every game is crucial at this stage of the season, and even if it wasn’t nice, they managed to defeat the 76ers 101-94.

After scoring the game’s first four points, Rui Hachimura added a triple to give the Lakers a 7-3 lead.

From there, Anthony Davis started to score inside the lane, but the 76ers made some adjustments on the offensive boards to tie the game.

D’Angelo Russell made back-to-back three-pointers around halfway through the first quarter, the first of which broke a tie with Nick Van Exel for the franchise’s all-time 3-point record. But after a defensive-heavy first quarter, the Lakers had a narrow 24-23 advantage.

The second saw LeBron James and Jaxson Hayes showcase their chemistry as the former found the latter for a slam and then the complete reverse occurred.

Still, both offenses struggled and played sloppily with the ball. Eventually, Tobias Harris took over, scoring five points in a row to tie the score at 43.

James and Kelly Oubre Jr. traded spectacular dunks to close the half, giving the 76ers a narrow 52–50 advantage as they headed to the locker room.

Austin Reaves made his first effort at a long range in the third quarter, although he missed it in the first half. However, the Lakers kept playing carelessly, and Mo Bamba made a long-range jump shot to give the 76ers a six-point advantage.

After that, Spencer Dinwiddie and Reaves each made a back-to-back triple, and the Lakers began to play. Then, in maybe his best offensive performance as a Laker, Dinwiddie added another. But the 76ers were still ahead 76-75 at the end of the third quarter.

The Lakers took the lead for the first time in the second half when Davis scored inside to start the fourth. From that point on, the referees permitted both teams to play physically, which led to a slugfest.

After a while, the Lakers began to pull away thanks to consecutive baskets from James and Davis that put them up five. After that, Davis made a three-point play, and James made a three-pointer to seal the victory.