Leonard scores 31 as Spurs thrash slumping Lakers

LOS ANGELES, US – Kawhi Leonard poured in 31 points in just 3 quarters as the San Antonio Spurs dominated in every facet of play Thursday, January 12 (Friday morning, Manila time) with a emphatic 134-94 blowout of the Los Angeles Lakers.

San Antonio’s 134 points were a season high, as were the 72 points scored by the Spurs in the first half and the overall margin of victory of 40 points.

Pau Gasol added 22 points for San Antonio, while LaMarcus Aldridge and Tony Parker added 13 each, all in just 3 quarters of the lopsided game. 

The Spurs also got 12 points from Jonathan Simmons and 10 from Dejounte Murray and a game-high 12 rebounds from Dewayne Dedmon.

San Antonio was a bad mood heading into Thursday’s home game after losing by 3 points to the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday.

The Spurs took out their frustrations on a meek Laker team as 4 of San Antonio’s starters finished in double figures at AT&T Center.

“I respect the way the Spurs played tonight – granted we didn’t put up a ton of fight – but it’s beautiful to see championship teams and the way they came out after one loss,” Lakers coach Luke Walton said.

“How (that loss) made them play and how sharp they were – there’s a lot to learn from being in this game, from watching them. I didn’t think we showed up to meet the challenge.” 

All 13 players who took the floor for San Antonio scored, and the Spurs (31-8) outshot Los Angeles 60 percent to 41 percent.

“You always want to handle a loss by bouncing back the next night,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said.

The lowly Lakers dropped to 15-28 on the season. They were once the “Showtime” darlings of the NBA but have been on a steady downward spiral ever since the passing of club owner and team architect Jerry Buss in 2013.

The Lakers were led Thursday by Julius Randle’s 22 points, but the rest of Los Angeles’ starters managed just 20 total points. 

In New York, Tyreke Evans scored 14 of his season-high 29 points in the fourth quarter and the New Orleans Pelicans overcame the absence of Anthony Davis with a 104-95 victory over the Brooklyn Nets.

Evans made 10 of 15 shots in a season-high 27 minutes. He missed the first 26 games of the season while recovering from knee surgery.

Season-high total 

It was the first time he scored more than 25 points since January 10 against the Los Angeles Clippers. 

Davis missed his second game of the season because of a left hip injury.

The Pelicans received little help from centers Omer Asik and Donatas Motiejunas, who combined for one point on 0-of-7 shooting. 

Elsewhere, Klay Thompson and Andre Iguodala connected on a pair of 3-pointers apiece during a long-range shooting exhibition that powered the Golden State Warriors to a 127-107 win over the Detroit Pistons.

Riding double-figure scoring from four starters, the Pistons were down 68-65 in the fourth minute of the third period before the Warriors stepped up their play to earn a season-series sweep. – Rappler.com