It was far from pretty, but the Los Angeles Lakers haven’t needed pretty over the past few weeks without their superstars. They needed to steal some wins and on Monday night, the Lakers did it again as they delivered another gritty performance, defeating the Hornets 101-93 in Charlotte.
The Lakers didn’t have a great offensive game and they nearly avoided a disaster in the final moments as the Hornets were resilient in making a run to win the game on their home court. But the Lakers were able to keep their cool and also get some huge shots down the stretch, two 3-pointers from Alex Caruso and another from Dennis Schröder, to hold off the Hornets.
Kyle Kuzma was key for the Lakers all night long, scoring 24 points in a starring role while the Laker stars continue to recuperate. Andre Drummond also made his presence felt with 12 rebounds, including four offensive rebounds to help get extra possessions. Now the Lakers come home for a two-game set against the Western Conference-leading Utah Jazz.