Lakers clobber Warriors in shocking upset

The Golden State Warriors played like a team that had an off day in Los Angeles on a Saturday, and an early game on a Sunday, against the Los Angeles Lakers in front of the whole world. Early on, the shots weren’t falling for the Warriors and the young Lakers were off and running.

In the first half of the game, the Lakers were taking advantage of turnovers and got out to a 14-point lead right before the second half. The Warriors had an abysmal 11 turnovers in the first half, while the Lakers did an exceptional job of protecting the ball with just one turnover.

While Curry led all starters with 13 points in the first half, it was the bench that was keeping the Lakers from running away with the game. The bench in the first half pumped in 24 points. The Warriors would walk off the court knowing they would need a better second half against a motivated Lakers team.

For the Lakers, it was their young guards, Jordan Clarkson and D’Angelo Russell that dominated early and often throughout the day for the Lakers. In the third quarter, the Lakers maintained the same defensive intensity and the Warriors could not find a rhythm to get it going.

Even worse for the Warriors, they continued to miss open shots. Klay Thompson was 0-7 from three through three quarters and could not find his range on the court. The Lakers would extend their lead to 16 toward the end of the third quarter off of a Nick Young three.

With the Lakers holding a commanding lead, the Warriors would have their work cut out for them entering the fourth and final quarter of play down 11. It wasn’t just the Curry and Thompson that were struggling from deep, it was the whole team. With the Warriors unable to make any threes, the Lakers were able to maintain their double-digit lead.

The fourth quarter would be more of the same as the Warriors couldn’t buy a bucket to save their lives and the Lakers were executing on the offensive end. Clarkson would continue to add to his offensive output with some big plays at the hoop and Marcelo Huertas would make some great passes.

Overall it was just an off day for the Warriors and they clearly were not ready to play on Sunday. Give credit to the Lakers and their efforts, because they came ready to play and played their best game of the season to date. It was the first time in NBA history that a team with a sub .200 record beat a team that was .900 or better.

Tale of the Tape

Warriors

• Field-goal percentage: 40.2% (37-92)
• Three-point percentage: 13.3% (4-30)
• Rebounds: 49
• Assists: 32
• Turnovers: 20

Lakers

• Field-goal percentage: 47.1% (41-87)
• Three-point percentage: 37.5% (9-24)
• Rebounds: 41
• Assists: 23
• Turnovers: 11

Good to Know

What’s on Tap

The Warriors will return home to face the Orlando Magic on Monday night.