Anthony Davis and the Lakers dominate Portland Trail Blazers, bringing Los Angeles worries to a rest. Even with Lebron James only scoring 10 points, Lakers managed to soar past doubts people began to have in Game 1. The hot Trail Blazers were anything but in Game 2 Thursday night as Logo Lillard did make an appearance. Perhaps most distressing for the Blazers is the finger dislocation Lillard suffered in the third quarter. The Lakers defense was also a huge key to the game as they did not allow Blazers to get any offensive rhythm going. Davis finished with 31 points and 11 rebounds next in line was surprisingly Kentavious Caldwell-Pope with 16 points. While Lillard only had 18 points before having to be sat due to his injury.
The first two quarters began even with both teams staying close until Caldwell-Pope sparked the offense with back to back threes. This provided the momentum for the Lakers to cause separation between the Blazers early on. Lillard tried to create offense where he could, but the Blazers still trailed by 8 points at the end of one. Lakers were firing on all cylinders as they carried over their offensive play in the second with great defense to boost. The Lakers’ lead was at 10 for most of the first half until Davis extended that lead even further, scoring 7 points in the final 2 minutes, and the Lakers led 56-39 at the half.
Second Half
The Lakers continued their great play as they were able to maintain their double-digit lead the entire second half. Davis played well on both ends of the floor, and Caldwell-Pope was able to push his three point shooting numbers to 4 of 6, a remarkable feat considering he went 1 of 7 from three in Game 1. Lillard, on the other hand, must have contracted Caldwell-Pope’s shooting bug from Game 1 as he shot only 14% from three point land. His third quarter injury now creates some pressure for the Blazers, who will have to play below 100 percent in Game 3 Saturday. The Lakers did not lose momentum as they shot 47% from the field and were able to lead comfortably the duration of the game ending at 111-88.
Concerns over whether or not the Lakers were going to be able to handle the Blazers quickly subsided with Thursday’s victory. Anthony Davis was able to recognize this pressure when interviewed saying, “We wanted to come out aggressive tonight with a sense of desperation and we did that.” The key for Davis being the defensive effort, “Stopping Dame and CJ you know those two guys can get it going at any time”. With Dame’s recent injury Blazer’s opportunities are up in the air and a sense of urgency looms as the series is now tied at 1-1.
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