EL SEGUNDO, Calif.-- Streaking at the right time, the South Bay Lakers picked up their Western Conference high sixth consecutive victory at home on Saturday night, scrapping and defending their way to a dominant victory over the Stockton Kings, 115-100, on their Black History Month night.
With the win over the previously one seeded Kings, South Bay leap frogged them in the standings, and is now in a three way tie for first place in the Western Conference with a 16-8 record, while Stockton falls to fourth.
The Lakers only shot 21.3% from beyond-the-arc, but it was their ruthless aggression that propelled them to victory, more than tripling the Kings points in the paint total, 66-20.
They matched that intensity on the defensive end as well, forcing 23 Stockton turnovers, including 13 steals, and scoring 20 points off those turnovers. Four players had double digit steals, led by the league leader in steals per game Chris Mañon, with five. The Lakers only turned the ball over 11 times themselves, and are now 8-1 on the season when they turn the ball over 12 times or less.
Drew Timme and Nick Smith Jr., both recently added back to the South Bay roster, handled the majority of the Lakers’ scoring duties Saturday, with Timme dropping 22 points to go along with eight rebounds and six assists, and Smith Jr. being an all around weapon as well, recording 20 points, seven dimes, and five boards off the bench.
The Lakers’ bench scoring was a crucial part of their success, scoring 54 points compared to Stockton’s 34. Smith Jr’s 20 piece was a large part of that, but Mañon helped out with 15 of his own.
South Bay came out flat early, which allowed Stockton to open up a 16-6 lead in the first. The Lakers figured it out though, closing the gap quickly, and the game remained tight until the end of the third quarter.
They led 78-76 with 3:13 remaining in the third, and coming out of a timeout, went on a 12-2 run powered by two Mañon steals and two Smith Jr. jumpers, bringing their lead to 12 at 90-78 at the end of the frame.
The Lakers didn’t look back going into the fourth, holding Stockton a game-low 22 points in the quarter while leading by as many as 22, to secure the win.
With the Los Angeles Lakers roster looking close to finalized as they prepare for a playoff run, this current iteration of South Bay, which has Adou Thiero, Bronny James Jr., Nick Smith Jr. and Drew Timme back, could be what other G League teams have to face for the remainder of the season.
Nobody wants to face a team that is 10 guys deep and has a multitude of players that could go off any night. For reference, Thiero, James Jr. and R.J. Davis only combined for 26 points tonight, and the team still won comfortably.
On top of this, they recently traded for Malik Williams, an impressive swiss army knife center who is averaging 15 and nine this season, another piece to help them attempt to make a deep playoff run.
Zach Guthrie has a special group on his hands, and with this current win streak, they are putting the entire league on notice.
They will get their chance to extend the streak to seven games on Wednesday, March 4th, when they begin a three game road trip, starting with the Oklahoma City Blue, who they lost to in overtime back in December. Tip-off for this revenge game is set bright and early, 9:00 a.m.
