Lakers sweep season series against Clippers behind Luka Dončić

A scoring explosion in the first quarter from Luka Dončić led to the Lakers winning their sixth game in a row, beating the Clippers on Sunday night.

The Lakers swept the season series against the Clippers on Sunday with a 108-102 win, their sixth straight win overall.

Luka Dončić ended the game with 29 points, six rebounds, nine assists, and two steals. LeBron James scored 17 points while grabbing five rebounds and dishing nine dimes. Dalton Knecht scored eight of his 19 points in the first quarter and went 5-8 from behind the arc for the game.

Dorian Finney-Smith went 4-9 from the field, ending with 11 points. Gabe Vincent pitched in with nine points and three rebounds.

The game began with Dorian and Luka giving the Lakers a quick nine-point lead from three 3-pointers. Luka was cooking, helping the team’s scoring run jump to 9-0. The Clippers’ offense woke up after they started sloppy and they cut the deficit to four.

Kris Dunn picked up where he left off last game, picking up three fouls in the opening quarter. We got our first Trey Jemison III sighting as he banked a floater. Dalton’s first minutes were productive, scoring eight quick points.

The Lakers were shooting 71% from behind the arc. The nine turnovers for the Lakers were stopping them from building on their momentum and lead. After his red-hot start, Luka went to the locker room towards the end of the quarter.

Still, after the first period, the purple and gold were up six.

The Clippers struck first in the second quarter while LeBron missed his first two shots. Dalton added two more 3-pointers, continuing his productive play. The Lakers’ lead was cut to two as the Clippers kept clawing back into it. Kawhi Leonard was fouled from behind the arc and he completed the four-point play to make it a tie game.

Luka returned to the game midway into the quarter.

A pair of 3-pointers by Gabe and Dorian helped the Lakers extend their lead. LeBron took the ball to the basket, faked a layup and passed the ball to Jaxson Hayes for a dunk as the Lakers’ scoring run ballooned to 10-0.

The Clippers were on a seven-minute scoring drought, thanks to the stifling defense by the Lakers. Luka cooled down offensively in this quarter, missing all three shot attempts. But the Lakers closed the half on a 12-0 run.

At halftime, the Lakers were up by 13.

The Clippers ended their drought with Kawhi scoring four straight points to start the second half. Jaxson’s athleticism saw him finish a dunk through a foul in emphatic fashion. LeBron converted on one of his usual fadeaway shots, moving him 10 points away from 50,000 career points.

Luka finally knocked down another shot, a jumper off one leg. He then connected with LeBron on another play with a long pass, leading to a layup and a Clippers timeout.

The Lakers were shooting an impressive 55% from the field.

Gabe, Luka and LeBron extended the lead for the Lakers with eight straight points between them. Dunn scored five quick points to help the Clippers mount a comeback, but the Lakers responded by growing their lead again.

The Clippers were forced to call timeout after a 3-pointer by Gabe helped the lead grow to 17. The Lakers exploded offensively again with Jarred Vanderbilt scoring four points and Luka draining another three.

James Harden was fouled on a 3-pointer and completed the four-point play. The Clippers went on an 8-0 run before the Shake Milton scored a 3-pointer. The Lakers had a tough time closing the quarter properly, but they were still up double digits at the end of the third.

LeBron turned the ball over for his eighth turnover to start the second half. The lead dropped to single digits with the Clippers playing defense, which led to a spurt of offense.

After a pair of missed dunks, Vando charged to the basket for a dunk off a missed LeBron 3-pointer. Both teams exchanged baskets, the Clippers were fighting back, leading to a Lakers timeout.

The scoring was atrocious for the Lakers in this quarter. They couldn’t knock down anything until LeBron drained a much-needed 3-pointer. Vando was a rebounding machine, up to nine for the night. The lead was back to double digits after Luka converted on three free throws.

Dalton subbed back into the game and drained his fifth 3-pointer. With two minutes left, the Lakers maintained a multi-possession lead until the Clippers scored five straight points to make it a five-point game.

A massive chase-down block by LeBron with 29 seconds left stopped an easy layup. The Clippers then had the ball and missed their shot attempts. The Lakers secured the ball after it bounced around a few times between players, sealing the win.

Key Takeaways:

Turnovers, stop the turnovers!

Vando’s rebounds and putbacks were crucial, something this team needs to do more often. Rebounds are important for an undermanned team. Give yourselves plenty of scoring opportunities.

Dalton has done a great job staying ready whenever he is called upon. Scoring eight quick points, with four of them being thanks to 3-pointers just in the first quarter is huge. He is essential to the success of this team.

The Lakers’ next game will be against the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday at 7:30 PM PT.

You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.