Orlando -
LeBron James achieved 36 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists, and the Los Angeles Lakers advanced to the Western Conference semifinals after defeating the Portland Trail Blazers 131-122 in the fifth game of the series, with the Blazers being turned into a hospital.
Anthony Davis scored 43 points for his best performance in the postseason with the Lakers, who were the top seed in the West and had not made the playoffs since 2013.
In addition, according to NBA records, James and Davis became the first duo from the Los Angeles team to score 35+ points in the same postseason game since Kobe Bryant (36) and Shaquille O'Neal (35) did it on June 9, 2002.
- The Lakers will finish as the top team in the West after ten years
The Lakers will face the winner of the series between Houston and Oklahoma City. The Rockets took a 3-2 lead with their 114-80 victory also on Saturday.
CJ McCollum scored 36 points for the Trail Blazers, who were without their star point guard Damian Lillard due to injury. Carmelo Anthony contributed 27 points.
Trailing by 14 points in the third period, Portland closed the gap to 100-97 with a layup by McCollum and tied the game with a three-pointer by Anfernee Simon in an 8-point offensive outburst with 9:46 remaining. James responded with a three-pointer.
LeBron James with the step back.
Why not?pic.twitter.com/645cJQklml
— NBA Latam (@NBALatam) August 30, 2020
Gary Trent Jr. tied the game at 109 with a three-pointer with less than seven minutes left in the match. Once again, the Lakers cooled off Portland with a three-pointer by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope.
After Trent made the score 114-112 with a three-pointer and 4:53 to play, Davis had a personal 11-0 run to give Los Angeles a 123-112 lead and seal the victory.
Back in the game, without Lillard
The game was originally scheduled for Wednesday night, but the players collectively decided not to participate in the three postseason games scheduled for that day in protest against racial injustice after a police officer shot African-American Jacob Blake in the back in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The games on Friday were also postponed.
Lillard injured his right knee in the fourth game and was forced to leave the bubble in Florida and return to Portland for treatment by doctors. Lillard was named the Most Valuable Player of the restart games leading up to the playoffs with an average of 37.6 points and 9.6 assists in eight games.
- NBA suspends second straight day of games and Donald Trump reacts
Trent Jr. took Lillard's place in the starting lineup. But due to injuries, the eighth-seeded Blazers had only nine players available for the game.
Portland got their only win in the first-round series in the first game.
Other Saturday results
- Bucks 118-104 Magic (4-1)
- Rockets 114-80 Thunder (3-2)
(D)