What was starting to feel like a magical season and turnaround for the Los Angeles Lakers is now in jeopardy after losing Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals 108-103 on Thursday.
Early on, it looked like they were on track to tie the series, as they scored the first nine points of the second quarter and took a nine-point lead over the Denver Nuggets. But they then went cold, missing 10 shots in a row, and saw their lead get whittled down to one point.
Los Angeles responded to boost its lead to five at halftime and 10 in the third before a 10-0 Denver run erased that advantage. In the fourth quarter, the Lakers’ offense fell apart, while the Nuggets got hot from downtown. In particular, Jamal Murray killed L.A. for the second game in a row with 23 second-half points, and it helped out the Nuggets with some poor shot selection and decision-making down the stretch. Meanwhile, Nikola Jokic had another triple-double.
The Lakers now trail the best-of-seven series 2-0. While it isn’t over, especially with the next two games in Southern California, they’re in a serious hole after looking like a gathering storm over the past two or three months.