Final: Lakers 108, Celtics 107

LOS ANGELES -- Adversity has finally arrived for this Celtics team. Boston blew a 14-point lead in the first half and got dominated by Kyle Kuzma (17 fourth quarter points) to drop a 110-108 decision at the Staples Center. It was the fourth straight loss for the Celtics.

The Lakers appeared to have the game wrapped up with a 6-point lead with 30 seconds remaining. However, Terry Rozier scored five points in the next 25 seconds, while the Lakers missed several free throws. Marcus Smart had a chance for the win on the game's final possession, but a 3-pointer from the point guard rimmed out as time expired.

Kyrie Irving scored a game-high 33 point in the defeat. The Celtics are back in action at the Staples Center on Wednesday night against the Clippers.

 

GAME: No. 48 of 82
WHO: Celtics (34-13) vs. Lakers (17-29)
WHEN:  10:30 EST
WHERE:  Staples Center
RADIO: 98.5 The Sports Hub
TV: NBC Sports Boston, TNT
BOX SCORE: NBA.COM

Projected Starting Lineups:

Celtics
PG: Kyrie Irving
SG: Jaylen Brown
SF: Jayson Tatum
PF: Al Horford
C: Aron Baynes

Inactive list:  Gordon Hayward (ankle) is out.

Lakers:

PG: Tyler Ennis
SG: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
SF: Brandon Ingram
PF: Julius Randle
C: Brook Lopez

Inactive list: Lonzo Ball is out.

Fourth Quarter Notes

• With the offense struggling, Brad Stevens went back to Kyrie Irving early in the frame with the bench unit, a change of pace from his normal routine.


• The move worked early as Irving facilitated the offense and managed to help build up a 6-point lead with the second unit.


• From there though, the C's dropped their guard and Kyle Kuzma took over. He was the catalyst for an 8-0 Lakers run, with his 3-point shooting and passing. The power forward made his first six shots of the frame, scoring 17 points in the first 10 minutes of the period to erase an eight-point Celtics lead and build a six-point edge for the Lakers at one point.


• The Celtics got close late behind some stellar offense from Kyrie Irving, but the Lakers worked the offensive glass against the C's to create second opportunities for themselves against the small ball lineup. The C's couldn't get the stops they needed late to give themselves a chance to win.

• Celtics really let go off the rope early in this quarter on the defensive end, carrying over the momentum that the Lakers built at the end of the first half with an 8-2 run.


• Lakers jumped out to a 10-2 run early, erasing a eight-point halftime deficit just a few minutes into the quarter.


• Really tough few minutes for Aron Baynes who was whistled for four fouls in just four minutes. He missed a couple easy looks down low and the refs weren't doing him any favors, but he's in a bit of a funk right now.


• on the other end, Julius Randle and Brook Lopez found some offensive rhythm, with Randle in particular finding some success attacking Horford in the post, a rarity for a big man.

• Celtics go back to the big starting lineup and it pays off immediately on the defensive end. Outside of Brook Lopez getting a couple decent looks from deep, the Lakers could get nothing going at all in the first quarter.


• Al Horford swallowed up Julius Randle on multiple postups, while Baynes was great contesting in the interior.


• While the defense was elite for the C's early, the offense was non existent. Kyrie Irving's jumper was off, Jaylen Brown couldn't finish and the C's weren't involved their big men much in the offense (which has been pretty common during their struggles.


• The only Celtic doing anything productive early on offense was Marcus Smart. He started strong with a couple drives, made a corner 3 and started firing away at will. A bit too much from deep (1-of-3) but the shots around the basket were falling (3-of-5 overall).


• Marcus Morris shook off a slow start to provide a scoring boost for the bench unit as well (11 points in 13 minutes) after a couple ugly midrange isolations to start his stint.


• Jarell Eddie had a quiet Celtic debut, missing his only 3 in three minutes. He looked respectable on defense but shooting is what is going to keep him on the court.


• The Lakers offense finally got things going in the second quarter thanks to the bench 1-2 punch of Jordan Clarkson and Kyle Kuzma. The duo posted both scored in double digits in the first half, leading a Lakers bench that outscored the starters by 29-8 margin at one point.


• When the starters did re-enter the game in the second quarter for the C's, they were able to get some separation with their offense. Irving got going, 3s started falling and the C's recovered from a horrific offensive first quarter to score 53 first half points.


• They led by as many as 14 before the Lakers closed the half with a 10-4 run to make things tighter with an eight-point game.

• No word yet on the starting lineup. Brook Lopez stretches the floor with his shooting, but he's also a major weapon on the offensive glass, which will make it tough for the Celtics to contain him without Aron Baynes. Marcus Morris provides more a of a stretch option to held guard the perimeter. The guess here is Morris gets the nod.


• The Celtics are in the midst of their first three-game losing streak of the season, which has Al Horford hoping he'll see a major response on Tuesday night. "I think it's for us to come together even tighter and go out and do the things we need to do," he explained. "We have to set the tone on defense, that has to be our mindset and sticking together. I think that through ups and downs -- we haven't really been through a down-down as a team this year -- so this is a great time for us to make sure that we're together and that we do it as a group."


•  The Lakers are the 29th ranked offense in the NBA, but they have turned things around of late, winning six of their past eight games after a nine-game losing streak. "They play with great pace offensively," Horford said. "They have a lot of talented guys, just up-and-down, that can do it all. They present a lot of problems, so it's important for us to be really locked in on the defensive end tonight, almost on a string. If there's a breakdown, we have to be able to cover for each other. I think that's a point of emphasis for our group tonight."


• The Celtics' biggest problem lately has been with their offensive production and Brad Stevens attributes the woes partially to shot selection. He wants to see this team attack the basket more. “Our shot profile is still a little bit better than I thought it would be," he said. "Like, if you look at the 3-point attempt percentage it’s still pretty good. My biggest thing is we’ve gotta get layups and get to the foul line more. We’re going to have to take some midrange at different times. Some of the best shots from the standpoint of late-game opportunities, when teams are trying to switch more and take away the three, will be increased midrange opportunities. And then  some of our guys are really comfortable in that range. But I’m pretty pleased with the 3-point attempt percentage. But we have to get more layups and we have to convert more layups. And we’ve gotta get to the line more.”