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LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers pulled away from the Memphis Grizzlies late in the fourth quarter to take Game 1 of their first-round matchup in the NBA Playoffs, 128-112, on Sunday afternoon.
James finished with 21 points on 8-of-16 shooting with 11 rebounds for a double-double in his return to the first round after missing out on the playoffs entirely last season. He also had five assists as well as two steals and three blocks to help on the defensive end.
But James wasn’t the leading scorer for the Lakers. Rather, Rui Hachimura was lights out from three-point land to total 29 points on the day. Most of his points came in the second half, too, as Hachimura was relied on to hit his open threes, and he came through.
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Austin Reaves also produced down the stretch in the fourth quarter, hitting a three-pointer and then a 13-foot jumper to make the gap, 120-112.
Anthony Davis saw 22 points in his box score after going 10-of-17 from the field with 12 rebounds for a double-double like his counterpart in James. He also led the way with seven blocks and finished at plus-27 when on the floor.
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As for the Grizzlies, all eyes are on star point guard Ja Morant after he suffered what appeared to be a gruesome hand injury on a dunk attempt over Davis in the fourth quarter.
Morant, who finished the game with 18 points, came down hard on the court after he was called for a charge on Davis when he flew through the air for the dunk. As he came down, Morant tried to brace himself with his hands and his fingers on the right hand appeared to bend backward on the video replay.
He was on the court in pain before getting up and running to the locker room. No word has come on his status just yet.
With Morant out of the rest of the game – he’d return to the bench with black tape on his hand but never checked in – the Grizzlies looked elsewhere for clutch baskets.
GRIZZLIES STAR JA MORANT SUFFERS GRUESOME HAND INJURY IN GAME 1 LOSS TO LAKERS
Jaren Jackson Jr., who finished with a game-high 21 points, knocked down a three-pointer with 3:11 to go in the fourth to make it a one-point game, 113-112, but Memphis couldn’t match L.A.’s buckets when they needed to.
Desmond Bane had 22 points for the Grizzlies, though he missed seven of his 10 three-point attempts. He also had five rebounds and six assists. Dillon Brooks finished the game with 15 points.
The Lakers and Grizzlies will play again in Memphis on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. ET.
