The Lakers conceded 42 points in the first quarter against the Knicks but were able to recover and won the game in overtime. The hosts stepped up their defensive in the third quarter as they let New York score just 13 points while scoring 31 themselves.
After the game Lakers head coach Frank Vogel talked about how his team turned the game around after a disappointing first quarter, stressing the fact that Los Angeles is a team that everyone wants to beat.
“We’re a bullseye team,” Vogel said after the Knicks game. “We get everybody’s best punch. We’re the Lakers, we got star power, all that stuff. Sometimes teams are going to come in and make all their shots in the first quarter and give us their best punch.
“The Knicks played great to start, give them credit. But when that happens, we have the mindset that okay, the first quarter was the first quarter.
“We got to lock down and each quarter after that has to get better. Second’s got to be better than the first, third’s got to be better than the second, fourth has to be better than the third. For the most part defense was much better the final three quarters.”
