The night belonged to one man and one man only.
Anthony Davis put his dominance on full display for everyone to see, setting season highs with 42 points and 23 rebounds to help the visiting Los Angeles Lakers squeak by the Charlotte Hornets 112-107 on Monday night.
It was built up to be a celebratory night for the Hornets in a game that was broadcasted on free, local over-the-air TV throughout the Carolinas for the first time since the 2007-08 season, giving them an opportunity to potentially capture some new buzz and a new audience.
But it did not go as planned.
Davis was extremely efficient, knocking down 17 of 28 shots from the field and reached the 40-point plateau for the third time this season. He cleaned the glass like Windex, pulling down eight offensive boards and finished three rebounds shy of matching his career high.
The 40-year-old LeBron James continued to perform at a high level, racking up 22 points, seven rebounds and eight assists and Austin Reaves contributed 17 points for the Lakers, who have been on a tear winning four straight games and six of their last seven.
Unfortunately for them, the Hornets played most of the game without their leading scorer, All-Star guard LaMelo Ball, who exited with 8:42 left in the second quarter.
Ball tripped while backpedaling after he stepped on the Lakers Jarred Vanderbilt’s foot, who recently came back from an injury himself, after burying a 3-pointer that pulled Charlotte within 16, 46-30. He did not return because of what the team called a left ankle sprain. He scored seven points in nine minutes of action.
Miles Bridges scored a team-high 26 points and eight rebounds to pace the Hornets, who have lost three of their past four games. Josh Okogie posted 19 points and Josh Green had 15 points.
Charlotte trailed by as many as 23 points in the first half before cutting into the deficit significantly to eight at the break, 59-51.
The Hornets mounted a couple of rallies in the second half but could not make enough defensive stops to get over the hump even though center Mark Williams was back after missing Saturday’s game with an injury.
Williams scored to pull the Hornets within six, 108-102, with 1:27 to play before Dorian Finney-Smith drove for a bucket for the Lakers.
Green sank three free throws with 13.3 seconds remaining to make it a one-possession game, 110-107, before Davis put the final nail in the coffin at the line for Los Angeles.
The Lakers, on their first leg of a four-game road trip in six days on the East Coast, survived despite committing 19 turnovers and shooting 6-for-28 (21.4 percent) from 3-point range.
Los Angeles raced out to a 42-19 lead less than a minute into the second quarter. Then it was Charlotte’s turn to catch fire, closing to within 59-51 by halftime.
The Lakers led by double-digits for most of the third quarter.
The Lakers travel to the ‘City of Brotherly Love’, Philadelphia on Tuesday to take on Tyrese Maxey and the 76ers.
The Hornets host the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday night.
