Anthony Davis had 24 points and 12 rebounds, Kyle Kuzma added 23 points and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Phoenix Suns 123-115 on Tuesday night.
The Lakers (8-2) are off to their best 10-game start since 2010 and bounced back from a home loss to Toronto on Sunday. LeBron James added 19 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds.
Phoenix (6-4) trailed for a big chunk of the fourth quarter but pushed ahead 113-111 on Devin Booker's fastbreak layup with 3:29 left. The Lakers responded with three straight 3-pointers — one from James and two more from Kuzma — to lead 120-113 and put the game out of reach.
Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James drives on Phoenix Suns center Aron Baynes (46) in the first half during an NBA basketball game, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2019, in Phoenix. (AP PhotoRick Scuteri)
Los Angeles dominated in the paint with 70 points. Dwight Howard came off the bench to score 12 points and grab nine rebounds in 20 minutes.
The Suns were led by Ricky Rubio and Booker, who both scored 21 points. Aron Baynes added 20 and Dario Saric had 18.
Davis scored 14 points as the Lakers took a 60-58 halftime lead. James added nine points and eight assists.
Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis dunks over Phoenix Suns guard Ricky Rubio (11) in the first half during an NBA basketball game, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2019, in Phoenix. (AP PhotoRick Scuteri)
EFFICIENT BOOKER
Booker came into the game shooting 54.5% from the field, 53.2% on 3-pointers and 92.3% on free throws. He's still on his 50/50/90 pace after shooting 9 of 18 from the field against the Lakers. He also had nine assists on Tuesday.
TIP-INS
Lakers: Coach Frank Vogel said before the game that Rajon Rondo (right calf strain) and Troy Daniels (sore left knee) were on 15-minute restrictions. Rondo had five points, six rebounds and seven assists in 14 minutes in his season debut. Daniels didn't play.
Suns: Rookie guard Ty Jerome missed his 10th straight game with a sprained right ankle. ... Baynes continued his good outside shooting with a 4 of 6 performance from behind the 3-point line. ... Frank Kaminsky had 16 points and nine rebounds in 23 minutes.
UP NEXT
Lakers return home to host Warriors on Wednesday.
Suns host the Hawks on Thursday.
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP-Sport
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Paolo Banchero had 31 points and 14 rebounds, Jalen Suggs added 24 points and the Orlando Magic handed Cleveland the worst playoff loss in franchise history, winning 121-83 on Thursday night to cut the Cavaliers’ lead to 2-1 in their Eastern Conference first-round series.
Franz Wagner finished with 16 points and eight assists for the Magic, who led by 43 points in the fourth quarter on the way to the third-largest margin of victory in a playoff game. They earned their first playoff victory since 2019 and the first on their home floor since April 26, 2011.
They can even the series with a victory at home Sunday.
Jarrett Allen had 15 points and eight rebounds for the Cavaliers, who shot 39% from the field and 23.5% from 3-point range. Caris LeVert added 15 points and Donovan Mitchell had 13 points and seven assists.
76ERS 125, KNICKS 114
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Joel Embiid scored 50 points, making all four 3-point attempts and scoring 18 in a potential series-shifting third quarter to lead Philadelphia to a win over New York in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round series.
Embiid boldly stated “we’re going to win this series” after the 76ers dropped Game 2.
With one of the finest postseason efforts of his career, Embiid became the third player to ever score 50 points against the Knicks in the postseason and kept the hope of a Philadelphia series comeback very much alive.
The Knicks lead the series 2-1. Game 4 is Sunday in Philadelphia.
Embiid was 13 of 19 from the floor overall, made 19 of 21 free throws and hit five 3-pointers.
NUGGETS 112, LAKERS 105
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Aaron Gordon had 29 points and 15 rebounds, Nikola Jokic added 24 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists, and Denver moved to the brink of the second round with a victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 3 of their first-round series..
Jamal Murray scored 22 points as the defending NBA champion Nuggets won their 11th consecutive meeting with LeBron James and the Lakers in dominating style.
Michael Porter Jr. added 20 points for Denver, which took control in the third quarter and cruised through the final minutes to its fifth straight road win over Los Angeles, starting with its sweep of last season’s Western Conference finals.
Game 4 is Saturday night in Los Angeles. No NBA team has ever rallied from an 0-3 playoff deficit.
Orlando Magic guard Cole Anthony (50) makes a shot as he gets past Cleveland Cavaliers guard Sam Merrill (5) during the second half of Game 3 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series Thursday, April 25, 2024, in Orlando, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
