NBA: Lakers post 81-point first half, trounce Hawks

LeBron James led the Los Angeles Lakers with 31 points, 10 assists, and nine rebounds, while Luka Doncic added 27 points and 12 assists as the Lakers ended a three-game losing streak with a 141-116 win over the visiting Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday.

Deandre Ayton contributed 17 points and a season-high 18 rebounds, Jake LaRavia also scored 17 points, and Marcus Smart added 16 as the Lakers shot 60.5% from the field in a dominant first half and finished the game at 57.8%.

Los Angeles excelled from beyond the arc, making 19 of 34 three-pointers (55.9%), a huge improvement from the previous night’s 8 of 36 (22.2%) in a road loss to the Sacramento Kings. The Lakers were playing the second game in a stretch of five contests over seven days.

For Atlanta, Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 26 points, while CJ McCollum added 25 in his second game with the Hawks following a Friday trade from the Washington Wizards. Corey Kispert, also acquired in the trade that sent four-time All-Star guard Trae Young to Washington, chipped in 19 points. Jalen Johnson added 13 points for Atlanta, whose three-game winning streak came to an end. The Hawks fell to 2-1 on a four-game road trip that concludes Thursday in Portland.

The game was tied at 42 in the second quarter before the Lakers took control with a 21-2 run, leading 63-44 with 5:20 remaining in the first half. Doncic scored the final 12 points of the run, including three three-pointers.

Los Angeles held an 81-60 lead at halftime, its highest-scoring first half of the season, with 19 assists on 26 made baskets. The Lakers reached 100 points at 101-82 with 2:14 left in the third quarter on a LaRavia layup. Although Atlanta cut the deficit to 102-86 by the end of the third, the Lakers maintained control.

The Hawks briefly pulled within 108-97 with 9:07 remaining, but Los Angeles put the game away, taking a 122-99 lead with 5:51 left after a fastbreak layup from Ayton.

Rui Hachimura scored seven points in 18 minutes after missing the previous seven games with a calf injury.

—Field Level Media/Reuters