LOS ANGELES — In a commanding performance, the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Boston Celtics 117-96 on Thursday night, spurred by strong contributions from Anthony Davis, who scored 24 points, and Austin Reaves, who added 23 points to the scoreline.
LeBron James contributed significantly with 20 points and 14 rebounds. Earlier on the same day, he was named to the All-Star Game for the 21st time in his career. Notably, James surpassed Hakeem Olajuwon for seventh place in the all-time defensive rebound rankings during the early stages of the third quarter, amassing a total of 9,720 rebounds by the game’s end. He needed only six defensive rebounds to achieve this milestone before the match commenced.
For the Celtics, Kristaps Porzingis led the offense with 22 points, while teammate Jaylen Brown added 17 points to the tally. After experiencing a dip in form where they lost four out of six games, the Lakers have now secured two consecutive victories, even extending their lead to as much as 28 points in the fourth quarter.
Takeaways from the matchup highlighted that Jayson Tatum, another All-Star selection, contributed 16 points for Boston. The Celtics have been busy, playing three games in four days, recently edging past the Clippers with a narrow 117-113 overtime win the night before.
Gabe Vincent also made an impact for Los Angeles, equaling his season-best with four three-pointers and totalling 12 points. The team excelled from beyond the arc, hitting 11 three-pointers in the first half alone—matching their best mark for the first two quarters of a game. Overall, they recorded a shooting percentage of 15 from 35 attempts from three-point range.
A key moment of the game occurred when LeBron James made a powerful drive past defenders Luke Kornet and Sam Hauser, culminating in a dunk that extended the Lakers’ lead to 34-23 with just 8.9 seconds remaining in the first quarter, capping off a 17-5 run over the closing minutes.
In terms of individual performances, Bronny James made his second straight appearance but finished with an attempted field goal that did not find the net in four minutes of play.
Looking ahead, both teams will be back in action on Saturday: the Celtics are set to face the Dallas Mavericks, while the Lakers will embark on a six-game road trip beginning against the Golden State Warriors.
