The Los Angeles Lakers have held double-digit leads in each of their three first-round playoff games against the Denver Nuggets, but every contest has ended in a loss.
The latest heartbreak happened Thursday, when Denver defeated the host Lakers 112-105 in Game 3, putting L.A. on the brink of elimination.
L.A. led by 12 in Game 1 before losing 114-103. L.A. led by 20 in Game 2 before losing 101-99. And then L.A. led by 12 in Game 3 before falling once again. Denver notably outscored L.A. 60-42 over the second and third quarters and held on from there.
The Lakers lost mostly because they couldn’t get much (or any) positive production outside of Anthony Davis (33 points, 15 rebounds), LeBron James (26 points, nine assists) and Austin Reaves (22 points, four steals).
Los Angeles made just five of 27 threes. D’Angelo Russell, who averaged 18.0 points during the regular season, went scoreless and missed all seven of his shots. All Lakers outside Davis, James and Reaves combined for 24 points on 10-of-30 shooting.
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With the win, Denver has beaten the Lakers 11 straight times (including the playoffs). That stretch includes Denver’s four-game sweep of the Lakers in last year’s Western Conference Finals.
Afterward, fans and analysts alike trolled the Lakers, who seem all but certain to head home in short order.
Game 4 will take place Saturday at 8:30 p.m. ET in Los Angeles. A Lakers win sends the series back to Denver for Game 5. A Nuggets win ends the Lakers’ season.
