Dalton Knecht scored a career-high 37 points and made nine 3-pointers to tie an NBA rookie record as the Los Angeles Lakers extended their winning streak to six games with a 124-118 victory over the visiting Utah Jazz on Tuesday in an NBA Cup group-play game.
Knecht was 9 of 12 from 3-point range and scored 22 consecutive points for the Lakers in a stretch that started with 3:29 remaining in the third quarter and ended with 9:51 left in the game.
LeBron James scored 26 points and dished out 12 assists and Anthony Davis amassed 26 points and 14 rebounds for the Lakers, who improved to 2-0 in NBA Cup play and are alone in first place of West Group B play.
Los Angeles, the defending champion of the in-season tournament, is a perfect 9-0 in NBA Cup play over the past two seasons.
Lauri Markkanen produced 25 points and eight rebounds while Collin Sexton added 19 points for the Jazz, who lost their third consecutive game and fell to 0-2 in NBA Cup group play.
John Collins, Keyonte George and Jordan Clarkson each scored 18 points for Utah, which has one more chance to earn a victory on its four-game road trip when it plays at San Antonio on Thursday.
The Jazz had no answer for Knecht in the third quarter, when the first-round draft pick out of Tennessee went 6-for-6 from long range. He sank four treys in a 1:42 stretch as the Lakers took a 91-73 lead with less than two minutes remaining in the period.
Knecht scored Los Angeles’ last 18 points in the third quarter by adding three free throws after he was fouled on a shot from deep, then hitting another 3-pointer with 26.3 seconds remaining. He opened the fourth quarter with another 3-pointer and a free throw.
The Lakers took a 97-75 lead into the fourth quarter and had to withstand a 13-1 run from the Jazz that cut the gap to 105-95 with 5:28 remaining.
Utah got inside double digits at 114-105 on a 3-pointer from George with 2:52 remaining and clawed within 116-109 with 1:42 remaining after Markkanen’s layup, before Los Angeles finished off the victory.
–Field Level Media
