The Los Angeles Lakers kept things interesting in the 127-115 victory over the Utah Jazz, which put pressure on competitors in the fourth quarter that led to overtime.
Joe Ingles and Jordan Clarkson launched an avalanche of tries to bring Utah back from a 14-point deficit. Clarkson then beat the Jazz two points ahead with a triple point, leaving the Lakers with just 9.2 seconds to level the game. The regions on the shooter in the Western Conference ended the night with 59 attempts from the city center, and 23 of them drilled on an efficiency of 39% on the goal of the field.
Andre Drummond offended the Lakers, along with Dennis Schroder, who scored 27 points for the team. But defensively, the center had a tough showdown with the 5-out formation from Utah. Head coach Frank Vogel even pulled the 27-year-old off the floor to close out the fourth quarter, though he returned in overtime.
But Vogel still thought Drummond did a good job on the defensive side. “It’s a challenge for every big player to play against five three – point shooters if they are used to manning the paint, and the challenge for us is that he is so new to our system,” he said.
‘Although we can show him the whole band and put him through all the reps in practice and what not, it takes time to get to know the plan at some point against an opponent that you are not sure what they are going to do not. run. Having that connection with his teammates takes time. ”
Vogel credited Drummond for his part in the third quarter that helped the Lakers build their biggest lead in the game. The coach explained that he left the two-time All-Star out of the game with a bottleneck that came closer in the final period to limit the damage Utah sustained from behind the three-point line.
Although he made the call, Vogel still thought Drummond should play a role in the game during overtime.
‘But at that moment it felt like we had mastered the game and that we could get it back under control, and he rewarded my confidence by putting him back in overtime by really dominating the overtime with blocked shots and plates and finishing at the edge, even to make his free throw when they tried to spoil him, ”said Vogel.
Drummond admitted LA made mistakes on the defensive side, but stressed the team’s focus in the deciding parts of the power play. “Obviously we made some mistakes throughout the game that brought them back in that fourth quarter, but when it was time to get stuck, we found a way to come out with a win,” he said. he said.
Lakers struggle for the second consecutive game on defense
The Lakers remain the best defense in the league, but the reigning NBA champion once again appears extremely vulnerable against the Jazz after failing to stop against the Boston Celtics on Thursday.
Marc Gasol pointed out after the 121-113 loss that the Celtics felt “too comfortable” at Staples Center. “They got to the place they wanted,” he said. “We were not physical enough, and when we got the chance to miss, we did not use the abuses or the abuse, which offensively transferred to easier points.”
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