Image Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Los Angeles Lakers Get the Better of Oklahoma City Thunder Behind Luka Doncic’s 30 Point Game

Luka Doncic posted a team-high 30 points to lead the Lakers to their second straight win.

Image Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

The Oklahoma City Thunder went down for the second straight game, probably their worst of the season. Coming on the back of a 125-111 loss to the Houston Rockets, a loss that ended their 11-game winning streak, the Thunder went down to the Los Angeles Lakers in a blowout 126-99 loss at Paycom Center.

The Lakers, who recorded a significant win over the Pelicans in the previous game, knew what was at stake. Their newest star Luka Doncic went all guns blazing right from the beginning to post a 78-56 lead at the end of the first half. This is the highest total that any visiting team has posted against the Thunder this season.

Casual. pic.twitter.com/9DncipmljT
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) April 6, 2025

Lakers Dominate First Half With Record-Tying 15 Threes

Doncic finished the first half with 22 points, including five three-pointers. Austin Reaves, Dorian Finney-Smith and Gabe Vincent chipped in three triples in the first half to combine 15 3Ps. With this, the Lakers tied for the most threes in a half in franchise’s history. After gaining control of the game in the first half, the Lakers continued their dominance after the break.

Oklahoma’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander recorded 26 points, three rebounds and nine assists, but went scoreless towards the end of the game. During the game, he didn’t attempt a free throw and finished with zero FTA in a game in 1,205 days. Since the Lakers had already gotten hold of the game, they put on a more relaxed attack in the second half, ending the quarters at only 25 and 23 points, respectively. The Thunder, on the other hand, ended the final two quarters with 21 and 22 points, respectively.

Luka, are you SERIOUS?! pic.twitter.com/sHxz6heW30
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) April 6, 2025

Also Read: Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves’ top performers as Lakers go 3rd in the Western Conference!

Doncic finished the game with 30 points, seven rebounds and six assists while Austom Reaves finished with 20 points, two rebounds and three assists. Superstar LeBron James came up with 19 points, three rebounds and seven assists. The Lakers dominance was backed by strong performances off the bench, where Dorian Finney-Smith chipped in 14 points, seven rebounds and two assists while Gabe Vincent tallied 12 points, three rebounds and three assists.

They finished with 22-of-40 behind the arc, recording a season-high number and tying the franchise high.

For the visitors, Jalen Williams posted 16 points, six rebounds and three assists while Chet Holmgren added 10 points, three rebounds and one assists. The Thunder, in fact, were lacking energy and were comparatively less aggressive. Both sides will be up against each other, again in Oklahoma City on Tuesday, April 8.

Also Read: When do the NBA Playoffs Start? NBA Playoffs Start Date 2025, Format, Bracket and More

Los Angeles Lakers

Oklahoma City Thunder

Garima Ranawat

Garima is a sports writer with around two years of experience in Indian sports and a newfound interest in the NBA. Inspired by the leadership of cricketing legend MS Dhoni, she wishes to bring in newer perspectives to the NBA fanatics with her writing.