Russell scores 32 as Lakers hold off Nets
LOS ANGELES -- D'Angelo Russell scored 32 points and Julius Randle recorded a triple-double, sparking the Los Angeles Lakers to a 125-118 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Tuesday night at Staples Center.
Russell had one of his best games since he hung a career-high 39 points on the Nets in a 107-101 decision on March 1 at Staples. On Tuesday, Russell scored 17 of his 19 first-half points in the second quarter, made 7 of 13 from 3-point range and 11 of 20 shots overall. Russell also collected a career-best eight rebounds.
Randle finished with 17 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists as the Lakers (7-5) defeated the Nets for the 16th time in their last 19 meetings. Timofey Mozgov had 20 points, Jordan Clarkson added 13 and Tarik Black chipped in 12 points and nine boards for Los Angeles.
Brook Lopez, who rested Monday in the Nets' 127-95 debacle against the Los Angeles Clippers, had 30 points and 10 rebounds. Lopez had averaged 24 points in 12 previous contests against the Lakers.
Bojan Bogdanovic contributed 20 of his 29 points in the second half for Brooklyn (4-7), which fell for the third time in four games.
Brooklyn cut the Lakers' double-digit lead to 116-112 on a layup by Trevor Booker with 2:49 remaining but failed to register another field goal until Joe Harris converted a layup with 32.6 seconds left. However, by then the Lakers had the outcome in hand.
The Lakers extended a five-point halftime lead into a double-digit cushion in the third quarter. A 3-pointer by Russell boosted the Lakers to an 80-67 advantage with 4:59 remaining in the period. Twice, Brooklyn cut the margin to six before the Lakers seized a 93-85 edge heading into the final quarter.
Los Angeles led 56-51 at the break. Russell made 5 of 8 from 3-point range in the first half.
The Nets outshot the Lakers 45.5 percent to 44.6 percent. Brooklyn connected on 12 of 41 3-point attempts (29.3 percent) compared to 9 of 28 (32.1 percent) for Los Angeles.
NOTES: The matchup featured the NBA's top two scoring benches. The Lakers ranked first at 51.3 points per game, while the Nets were second at 45.7. "Not sure (why), but I know we give our bench a lot of opportunities and a lot of those guys play as many minutes as the starters do," Lakers coach Luke Walton said before the game. Said Nets coach Kenny Atkinson, "I know their bench is a strong part, but we have to focus on us and get our rotations right." ... Nets G Jeremy Lin (strained left hamstring) missed his sixth straight game. ... Both clubs resume play Friday. Brooklyn caps its four-game trip at Oklahoma City, while Los Angeles hosts the San Antonio Spurs.