After winning four of five games and three in a row, the Los Angeles Lakers’ budding momentum was popped on Tuesday when they were without LeBron James and D’Angelo Russell and fell, 121-109, to the Memphis Grizzlies.
On Wednesday, they were also without the services of Anthony Davis when they took on the Oklahoma City Thunder to close a three-game road trip.
Los Angeles built a 10-2 lead, only to lose its lead in the second quarter. Unlike on Tuesday, it was able to fight back.
The Lakers took control after halftime by outscoring the Thunder, 33-24, in the third quarter, and they held on for a 123-117 victory. It gave them five wins in their last seven contests and moved them one step closer to a play-in tournament spot.
The team is in 11th place in the Western Conference, half a game behind the 10th-place New Orleans Pelicans. It returns to the Southland for a five-game homestand.