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South Bay Lakers Dominate the Texas Legends at Home

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The South Bay Lakers were back in El Segundo on Monday night. They just came off a close loss against the Santa Cruz Warriors up north the night before. So the SB Lakers were actually playing their third game in four nights, a rarity in the G-League. They were taking on the Texas Legends.

The SB Lakers had Thomas Bryant, Gary Payton II, and Alex Caruso active for this game. The Texas Legends didn’t have their two-way players (Jalen Jones and Johnathan Motley) active but they did carry former Pacers guard Donald Sloan on the team. Still, the Legends were a depleted team coming into Monday night.

From the jump, the South Bay Lakers stepped on the gas pedal. Ex-UCLA Bruin Travis Wear kept his hot shooting going. Thomas Bryant was dunking all over the place. Ex-Rocket Scott Machado was finding his teammates. DeMarcus Holland got off to a great start. And Alex Caruso put on a show after he came off the bench, scoring 12 points (also a +17!) in the first quarter. The SB Lakers dropped 46 in the period (the Legends had 34).

It was in the second quarter where the SB Lakers broke the game open. South Bay was incinerating the nets, shooting just under 69 percent (nice!) in the first half. Machado had 14 dimes by then. They led the Legends, 87-60, at the half. At this point, I was just questioning if they could score 150 by the end of the game.

It never stopped for the SB Lakers. They kept their hot shooting going. After the third, they were STILL shooting at a scorching 65 percent. The score was 122-83 by then. It was extensive garbage time by the fourth and the only drama left was what the final margin would be.

The final score was 155-114. Yes. The South Bay Lakers scored 155 points.

It was one of the greatest offensive displays I have ever seen in any level. The SB Lakers dominated on nearly every facet. They shot 60 percent overall from the field. They made 17/38 from three (.447). They smashed the Legends on the boards, 60-36. And the signature ball movement of the SB Lakers was there; they ended with 38 assists.

Travis Wear led the SB Lakers with 26 points (7/10 threes). DeMarcus Holland went for 25 points. Alex Caruso ended with 22-6-5. Thomas Bryant put on a dunk show; he had 17 points. Scott Machado had a delicious double-double with 11 points and 16 assists. And Gary Payton II scored 19 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter. Wear, Caruso, Bryant, and Machado understandably didn’t see action in the fourth quarter with the game pretty much in the can by then.

The Legends were led by former Arizona Wildcat Brandon Ashley (23 points). Jameel Warney (who went to Stony Brook) had 21 points and ex-Pacer Donald Sloan had 18.

South Bay Laker coach Coby Karl stopped by for a postgame chat. He, like his players said in the past couple of weeks, stopped short of saying this was the best game they played this season (they have had incredible games as of late) but he liked the special bond that this team was having. He also felt that it would be a better all-star break for them if they took care of business early; he mentioned that they didn’t get the win in Santa Cruz but he liked the way his players fought. Karl really liked that his players support each other.

Thomas Bryant also stopped by. I had mentioned to him his past six days (SB Lakers on Wed and Fri, L.A. Lakers on Thu, day off on Sat, and then back-to-back with the SB Lakers on Sun and Mon) and he said that, while he was extremely tired, the grind never stops for him. Bryant said that as long as he gets to the gym and works on his game, he’ll be fine. He also emphasized that Coach Karl wanted them to finish the game strong, especially after they took the loss against the Santa Cruz Warriors.

Bryant mentioned that his time will come with the Lakers; he just has to continue working hard and be patient about it. He likes his time with the G-League because he feels he’s getting much more development on his game with the South Bay Lakers. He really likes the chemistry of the team and the way they gel together.

Of note, new Laker Channing Frye was at the game.

And Kansas City Chief Travis Kelce was also there!

The South Bay Lakers go into the break with a 23-14 record, good for second in the Western Conference. The Texas Legends go down to 22-16. The SB Lakers won’t play again until Thursday, Feb. 22nd. They play the Agua Caliente Clippers then.

*We’d like to thank Noah Camarena, the media relations coordinator of the South Bay Lakers, for giving us this opportunity to cover the team.