Here is a by-the-numbers look at the Lakers’ 111-95 loss to the Washington Wizards.
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L.A.’s lead with 5:45 remaining in the first half. However, from there the Wizards went on a 29-7 run that netted them a 65-54 lead with 7:52 left in the third quarter. During this stretch, Paul Pierce and Bradley Beal combined to shoot 7-for-12 for nine points apiece, while the Lakers went just 3-for-16 and were outrebounded, 17-8.
“I thought that (Washington) just got a little bit more aggressive,” head coach Byron Scott said. “Their intensity level went up it seems like each quarter. That being said, with a minute and a half left (in the game), we’re still right there. So we just need more guys to join the party. That’s the bottom line. We don’t have the luxury of having two or three guys not having good games on a night like this playing against a team like this.”
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Points in the paint for the Lakers. The Wizards dominated down low, outscoring L.A. in the paint by 36 points. Washington’s starting frontcourt was particularly devastating, as Marcin Gortat reached a double-double with 21 points (9-for-13) and 11 rebounds, while Kris Humphries hauled in 20 boards — the NBA’s fourth-highest total of the season. Overall, the Wizards outrebounded the Lakers, 53-43.
"I'm glad that me and (Humphries) dominate the paint, and we just try to cover for each other," Gortat said. "I was going today a bit more, and he was getting those rebounds. It's fun to play with him. His basketball IQ is really high, so it's always fun to play with a guy who knows the game and plays the game the right way."
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Points for Nick Young. The former Wizard set a new season-high for scoring by an L.A. reserve by going 7-for-14 from the field in 24 minutes off the bench. He also shot 5-for-8 from long distance to lead the Lakers to a season-best 12 3-pointers.
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Points for Kobe Bryant, who led all players. However, it was a Jekyll-and-Hyde performance for Bryant, who scored 20 points in the first half (8-for-15) but missed all seven of his shots from the field in the second. However, he added to his league-high scoring average (25.2 points) by going 9-for-11 at the free throw line in the final two quarters.
“It’s probably a combination of both (playing) a young, fast team and us coming off a back-to-back,” Bryant said. “You saw a lot of our shots going short right there at the lip of the rim. We had some great opportunities. We just weren’t able to capitalize.”
33 Beal’s plus/minus. The 21-year-old dropped 27 points on 11-for-19 shooting and dished out seven assists to record Washington’s highest plus/minus since Juan Dixon also reached +33 on Dec. 9, 2008.