With a 116-108 victory over Utah, Los Angeles clinched the top overall seed in the Western Conference for the first time since the 2009-10 season. In doing so, the Lakers also clinched their 24th Pacific Division title, the team’s first since the 2011-12 season.
For the 12th time this season, Anthony Davis (42 points) and LeBron James (22) combined for 60+ points. The Lakers are 12-0 in those scenarios, per ESPN Stats & Info.
The Lakers converted 50 percent of their shots from the field (41-82 FG) in the contest, improving to 26-0 when making at least half of their attempts this season. Los Angeles tied a single-quarter season-high with six steals in the third period of tonight’s contest en route to 12 steals on the night. The team improved to 31-3 when committing less turnovers than the opponent.
Anthony Davis finished with 42 points (13-28 FG, 12-15 FT), 12 rebounds, four assists, three steals and one block in 39 minutes, marking his 29th career game with at least 40 points and 10 rebounds. With tonight’s performance, Davis tied Larry Bird and Karl Malone for the 10th most such games in NBA history, per Stathead Basketball. The performance was his fifth game of the season with 40+ points (T-5th in NBA) and the 35th 40-point game of his career. Davis scored in double figures in the first (13 points), second (11) and third (10) quarters of tonight’s contest. His 14 field goal attempts in the first quarter marked a Lakers single-quarter high this season. With 24 first-half points, Davis recorded a 20-point half for the 20th time this season and is the first Lakers player to reach that mark since Kobe Bryant (2012-13), per ESPN Stats & Info.
LeBron James tallied 22 points, eight rebounds, nine assists, two steals and a block in 35 minutes. The contest was James’ 51st 20-point game of the season (4th in NBA) and the 1,043rd such game of his career (3rd all-time). James continues to lead the league in total assists (657), assist average (10.4) and double-digit assist games (38).
Dwight Howard led the second unit with 11 points (4-4 FG), five rebounds, one steal and one block in 17 minutes, his 23rd game of the year scoring in double figures.