Anthony Davis’ huge night helps Lakers win playoff series opener against Warriors

LeBron James no longer has to do it all against Stephen Curry on the big stage, not even close. Anthony Davis plugs the middle and takes away the easy chances inside. Dennis Schröder has the energy to help chase No 30 all over the court. D’Angelo Russell can hit a big shot with a hand in his face.

That’s the thing about these new-look Lakers – they take much pressure off the game’s all-time scoring leader, even with the defending champions on a 14-0 run with their home crowd rocking.

Davis had 30 points, 23 rebounds, five assists and four blocked shots, James added 22 points and 11 rebounds dueling with Curry in their latest postseason showdown, and Los Angeles held off a late flurry by the Golden State Warriors to win an entertaining Game 1 in the Western Conference semi-finals 117-112 on Tuesday night.

“We’ve been playing playoff basketball for about two-and-a-half months now just to punch our clock to be able to play right now in the postseason,” James said. “We were very resilient tonight ... We know how great they are on their home floor, so to withstand that, it’s another good step for our ballclub.”

James’ 23 points were his third-fewest in 23 playoff games against the Warriors. His previous low in a win was 27 in Game 7 of 2016 finals.

Jordan Poole missed a three-pointer to tie the game with 9.7 seconds left as the Warriors’ rally in the closing minutes fell short.

For all-time scoring leader James and Curry – who has the most 3-pointers ever and is reigning NBA finals MVP – this is a new chapter in the long rivalry between the superstars after they faced off in four straight NBA finals from 2015-2018 while James played for Cleveland.

Curry scored 27 points, Splash Brother Klay Thompson had 25, and Kevon Looney