Los Angeles Lakers (4-1) beat LA the Clippers (1-3) 103-87 on the road on Wednesday, October 28 in a low-scoring game: just 190 combined points between the two teams.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Lakers struck first, taking the opening quarter 25-22 and a 3-point lead after one. The Lakers kept the pressure on with a 31-16 second quarter, carrying a 18-point lead into halftime.
The Lakers won the third 29-28 to create some separation, taking a 19-point lead into the fourth. The Clippers took the fourth 21-18; the Lakers held on for a 103-87 regulation win.
What decided it
The Lakers got more from their shots, finishing at 50% effective field-goal shooting compared with 41.9% for the Clippers. The Lakers took better care of the ball, turning it over on 19.9% of possessions compared with 24.5% for the Clippers. That shooting gap supplied the clearest edge.
At roughly 97 possessions per team, the Lakers produced 106.5 points per 100 possessions to 90 for the Clippers.
Who made the difference
Quentin Grimes was the game's biggest individual force for LAL: 23 pts, 3 reb, 5 ast, 4 stl on 7-15 shooting. His Game Score of 19.5 led everyone. His team was +10 with him on the floor.
Derrick Jones Jr. led the Clippers with 15 pts, 5 reb, 0 ast, 4 stl on 6-10 shooting, good for a 15.7 Game Score.
What it means
The pre-game Win Meter had it close to a coin flip, at about 43% for the Lakers.
Across the last 9 meetings in our records, Los Angeles Lakers lead 6-3.
The Lakers are now 4-1, and the Clippers are 1-3. The Lakers last five before this game: L-W-W-W-L.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.