RECAP: T-Wolves 112, Lakers 111
- Updated: October 29, 2015
It’s finally here! Opening night for the Los Angeles Lakers and their opponents, the Minnesota Timberwolves, with the T-Wolves taking this game, 112-111. This opening night was played with heavy emotions, with the passing of Flip Saunders on this past Sunday, all teams around the league paused for a moment of silence for the former Timberwolves coach.
The Lakers started out with Julius Randle, Roy Hibbert, Jordan Clarkson, the rookie D’Angelo Russell and Kobe Bryant. It was really good to see the vintage version of Kobe Bryant last night, as he made his return from injuries that hampered his past two seasons. Bryant ended up with 24 points, on 8 of 24 from the field (no pun intended), to lead the team in scoring.
As for the game, the Lakers built a very nice 16 point lead, which was erased in the fourth quarter, led by Timberwolves point guard Ricky Rubio. Rubio scored a career-high 28 points and added 14 assist. Kevin Martin scored 23, and was a real thorn in the side of the Lakers defense, to help the T-Wolves gain momentum and was the spark of the comeback. Newly acquired Laker guard Lou Williams, missed a 4-foot jumper at the buzzer, that would have given the Lakers the win.
SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW:
With the return of Kobe Bryant and the T-Wolves Kevin Garnett, this was the first time in NBA history that two players with 20 years of NBA service has faced off against each other, in an NBA contest. Karl-Anthony Towns, who was the first overall pick in this years NBA Draft, played his first game against the Lakers D’Angelo Russell, who was the second overall pick. In his return from injury, Julius Randle was very impressive, with 15 points and 11 rebounds. Roy Hibbert made his impact in his first game as a Laker as well, he added 12 points, and grabbed 10 boards and was a perfect 10, from the free-throw line.
Towns made a sudden impact on his team, scoring 14 points and grabbing 12 boards, to lead the T-Wolves in rebounds. Russell’s debut as the Lakers point guard was fair, he scored only 4 points, but turned the ball over three times and committed three fouls.
Kobe Bryant eclipsed another milestone in his brilliant career. Bryant played 29 minutes and moved into fifth place on the all-time list of the category, now with 46,803 for his career. He also set an NBA record last night, for most seasons played with one franchise, with 20.
NEXT UP FOR THE LAKERS:
The first loss of the season is not a big deal, just remember that there are 81 more games to go. The Lakers will travel to the state capital to take on the Sacramento Kings on Friday night, looking to even their record at 1-1.
Stay with us at Calisportsnews.com as we will keep you up-to-date on all things Los Angeles Lakers and the rest of the LA sports teams! All Cali, All the time!
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