Lakers dismantle Kings with second-half surge.
The Lakers win their second consecutive game in a considerable second-half effort to lift past the Sacramento Kings 117–92, their biggest victory margin of the season to improve their season record to 12–11.
Tonight's turnaround came in the 3rd quarter, with the Lakers changing the game's momentum with a monstrous second half, outscoring the Kings 67–33 and holding them to 29% shooting.
During halftime, head coach Frank Vogel claimed he had to lecture the squad about their transition defense, saying: "Every now and then, a coach has to light a fire under his team. Today was one of those days."
It was reported by Shams Charania that Lebron James would enter health and safety protocols and will be sidelined for at least 10 days, or unless he returns two negative test results in 24 hours moving forward.
Anthony Davis led the way for the Lakers tonight, finishing with a team-high 25 points on 12 of 22 shooting from the floor, adding 7 rebounds and a pair of blocks and steals in 34 minutes.
After admitting he had a bad first half, Russell Westbrook turned it around in the second half, being a part of the Lakers' impactful 3rd quarter finishing with 23 points, 6 assists, and 5 rebounds.
Russell Westbrook on Vogel's fiery halftime discussion, saying: "For me personally, I already knew I was playing shitty, so I knew I had to step it up anyway."
Davis and Westbrook's impacts tonight was much needed for the purple and gold who entered tonight's matchup without LeBron James and Avery Bradley, making their efforts more critical.
Malik Monk was the Lakers' 3rd leading scorer in tonight's road win, scoring 22 points on 6 for 10 (60%) shooting from three. Monk also finished with a game-high +33 in the plus/minus, adding 4 rebounds and 4 assists in his big night.
The Lakers will travel back home to face their hometown rival Los Angeles Clippers, who are currently 11–10 on the season. With LeBron looking to be out for some time, look for the Lakers to plug in players in and out of the lineup in his absence.