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LeBron James and the LA Lakers took a 1-0 series lead in their conference semis matchup against the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday. The Lakers relied on the free throw disparity to script a 117-112 win in Game 1. That offset the Warriors out-shooting them 21-6 from deep.
LA played excellent defense and allowed the Warriors only six trips to the foul line while making 29 free throw attempts. Darvin Ham's team outscored the Warriors 54-28 in the paint and attacked the lanes consistently throughout the night after failing to convert shots from three-point range.
They made only one shot from deep in the first half, with the other six coming in the second half. However, Warriors fans online were infuriated at the officials looking at the free throw disparity.
One fan wrote on Twitter:
"Refs were Lebron lovers! Soft calls for Lakers"
More reactions followed:
Anthony Davis' monster effort puts LA Lakers on top in Game 1 against Golden State Warriors
The LA Lakers needed Anthony Davis to step up to have a shot at beating the defending champions in Game 1, and that's what the veteran superstar did. Davis started the game hot, carrying the team's struggling offense in the first quarter.
LA opened the game trailing 2-10, but Davis kept them afloat as they finished the opening 12 minutes, cutting the Dubs' lead to two. Davis had 14 points by then on 7-of-8 shooting. He continued his strong effort throughout the night on both ends, tallying 30 points, 23 rebounds, five assists and four blocks.
AD's presence in the paint limited the Warriors from scoring at the rim. He altered their shots and forced tough looks on them, which was decisive, especially against Steph Curry. Jarred Vanderbilt and Dennis Schroder gave the two-time MVP a hard time on the perimeter, and Davis capitalized on that with his help defense.
LA managed to limit the latter to 41.7% shooting for 27 points. Curry made six threes on the night, which accounted for most of his scoring production. Meanwhile, the rest of Golden State's players, who had at least nine attempts, also shot 46% or less. Their three-point shooting bailed them out in this contest.
The purple and gold franchise also received significant contributions from LeBron James (22 points and 11 rebounds), D'Angelo Russell (19 points) and Dennis Schroder (19 points) on offense, while the whole team stepped up defensively.
