CLE 64 LAL 55
Welcome in to the halftime post for the Lakers' matchup vs. the Cleveland Cavaliers where the Cavs take a 64-55 lead at the half.
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Kobe Bryant, 12 points, 7-10 shooting. You know there was absolutely no way that Kobe's sore shoulder is going to keep him down for his final showdown with LeBron. Bad shoulder at all, the Black Mamba is turning back the clock with some vintage moves in his arsenal against the King, faking him out for a layup, shooting a fadeaway jumper, and shooting a 3 pointer in front of LeBron's face. This is just great that Kobe is pulling off a vintage performance so far.
Marcelo Huertas, 11 points, 5-6 shooting. Once again, Huertas is showing how much his presence is benefiting the other four players around him. I liked the fact he's displaying his aggression as a scorer. He's known for his court vision, however the Cavs are doing a great job getting back on the defense and that opened a lot of opportunities to take a shot and he's hitting them.
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3 point defense. Sunday, the Lakers held the Warriors to just three made shots from beyond the arc. Tonight, they've allowed the Cavs to make 10 shots from beyond the arc. But what can you do when you have a freight train like LeBron running at you? Channing Frye is the beneficiary big time, scoring 16 of the Cavs' points and making 4 of his shots from 3 points. He's absolutely killing the Lakers right now from beyond the arc.
Jordan Clarkson, 1 point, 0-7 shooting. Talk about a rough start for JC. He's been a constant for the Lakers, but there's no denying, he is struggling right now as he missed a couple of good looks and struggled handling the ball.
Bottom Line
By all means, 9 points seems like a big lead, but it's still manageable for this Lakers' team to rally. However, there's no denying that Cleveland's defense is underrated. The Lakers have to find a way to contain the Cavs' 3 point game. They have to stop Channing Frye's hot streak and prevent J.R. Smith and the rest of the Cavs' shooters from catching fire. Bad news for all NBA fans, two more quarters for Kobe vs. LeBron. Let's see what happens.
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