ANTHONY DAVIS' FRUSTRATION BOILS OVER
- The LA Lakers dominated early, but took their foot off the gas in the 2nd half and allowed the Denver Nuggets to come back
- Frustration was evident in Anthony Davis' post-game presser after the heartbreaking loss.
- Davis had a tale of two halves with 24 first half points dropping to 8 in the second half.
Anthony Davis had an excellent game for the Los Angeles Lakers last night, especially in the first half. He dropped 32 points and 11 rebounds on 73.7 percent shooting from the field.
Although he played incredibly and the Lakers as a whole dominated through the first two and a half quarters, they let their foot off the gas pedal, which allowed the Nuggets to slowly creep back into the game.
What was a 20-point lead early in the third quarter was slowly but surely erased by the Denver Nuggets, leading to an incredible shot by Jamal Murray over Davis's outstretched arm.
Frustration Boiling Over in LA
Davis was clearly frustrated in his post-game presser and called it early
Davis was rightfully upset by the events that boiled over. He had a ridiculous first half where nobody could stop him and started the second half hot with eight early points.After that point, it all turned around for Davis and the Lakers and led to the heartbreaking Murray shot.
Obviously, losing a game like this is heart-wrenching for a team that hasn't beat the opponent in any of the last 10 games.
The Nuggets' win-streak over the Lakers is currently one of the longest active win-streaks of one team over another and includes six playoff games.
Losing that many games, especially playoff games, in a row to a single team can be demoralizing and take a toll on the players, which was evident after last night's game.
Davis had this to say in his post-game press conference after a reporter asked him what happened on the last play via NBA TV:
"Jamal Murray made a shot."
Immediately after saying that, Davis walked off the podium and left the scene.
Davis and the Lakers as a whole will need to regroup and put this game behind them when going back to Los Angeles if they want to steal a game back in the series.
A Tale of Two Halves for Davis and the Lakers
Davis added 24 points in the first half compared to only 8 in the second half
Ultimately, it was a tale of two halves by Davis, as he went from getting whatever he wanted in the first half, to only taking one shot in the fourth quarter.
With 7:15 left in the third quarter, Davis made a shot to put the Lakers up by 19 points, but those were ultimately Davis's last points of the entire game. A game where he dropped 32 points had him seeing his last points less than halfway through the third quarter.
| Anthony Davis numbers by half - Game 2 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Category | First Half | Second Half |
| Points | 24 | 8 |
| Rebounds | 6 | 5 |
| FG/FGA | 11/12 | 3/7 |
| Steals + Blocks | 2 | 0 |
| +/- | +15 | -15 |
Davis was ultimately ineffective in a half where the Lakers desperately needed him to contribute.
The Lakers as a whole shot 56.1 percent in the first half to only 40.5 percent in the second half. This led to Lakers' legend James Worthy saying they "lack killer instinct."
For the Lakers to come back in the series and potentially win it, they will need the aggressive Davis from the tip to the buzzer and the rest of the team to follow suit.
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