Lakers Close Road Trip with Dominant Win Over Bucks Behind Luka Doncic's 41 Points

The Los Angeles Lakers wrapped up their road trip in style Saturday night, defeating the Milwaukee Bucks 119-95 at Fiserv Forum. Playing on the second night of a back-to-back, the Lakers improved to 10-4 on the season while the Bucks fell to 8-6.

Luka's Leadership Shines Through

After the victory, Luka Doncic reflected on the team's ability to find energy despite the tough travel schedule. "It was a long trip but everybody played amazing," Doncic said. "The way we found energy, I told the guys 'we got to build on each other. I know everybody's tired. We came here to win.' I can't wait to go home. It feels like one year we've been on the road."

Real Sports (@realapp) on X Luka Doncic is the fastest player this century to reach 50 career 40-point games.

The Lakers' star backed up his words with a game-high 41 points on the night, adding nine rebounds and six assists.

Doncic has been the driving force for Los Angeles all season, currently leading the NBA with 33.7 points per game while also contributing 8.9 rebounds and 9.2 assists.

Role Players Step Up

With Marcus Smart sidelined due to illness and Rui Hachimura out with calf tightness, the Lakers needed other players to step up alongside Doncic. 

Austin Reaves answered the call, scoring 25 points and dishing out eight assists. Reaves was especially clutch in the fourth quarter, hitting three straight three-pointers when the Bucks made a push to get back in the game.

Real Sports (@realapp) on X Austin Reaves has the 2nd most 25-point games by a Lakers guard since 2000. Only Kobe had more.

Deandre Ayton controlled the paint all night, finishing with 20 points on 9-of-13 shooting to go along with 10 rebounds. The big man has been finding his rhythm lately, and his inside presence helped the Lakers build a huge first-half lead.

Dominating Performance

Los Angeles took control early, racing out to a 30-18 lead after the first quarter. The Lakers held Milwaukee to just 18 points in the opening frame, the Bucks' lowest first-quarter total of the season. By halftime, the advantage had grown to a massive 63-34.

StatMuse (@statmuse) on X Fun Fact: Luka Doncic has more 40-point games than the Mavericks have wins.

Milwaukee tried to fight back in the third quarter, putting together a 15-0 run that cut the lead down.

But Doncic wouldn't let the game slip away, scoring eight straight points to close the quarter and restore the Lakers' 20-point cushion.

Finishing the Trip Strong

The victory capped off a successful two-game stretch for the Lakers, who also beat the New Orleans Pelicans 118-104 on Friday night.

Playing without LeBron James, who has missed all 14 games this season with sciatica, Los Angeles went 2-0 in their back-to-back games and improved to 7-2 on the road.

Lakers Nation PH (@LakersNation_PH) on X Lakers beat the Bucks 119-94 Luka Doncic 41 pts 9 rebs 6 assts 1 stl 2 blks Austin Reaves 25 pts 5 rebs 8 assts 1 stl DeAndre Ayton 20 pts 10 rebs 2 stls 1 blk Jaxson Hayes 10 pts 6 rebs 2 stls Dalton Knecht 9 pts 6 rebs 3stls LAL are now 10-4 & end their road trip 3-2

For the Bucks, Giannis Antetokounmpo led the way with 32 points and 10 rebounds, but Milwaukee couldn't recover from their slow start and ice-cold shooting in the first half.

The Lakers return home after their long road trip, ready to finally rest before their next game against the Utah Jazz on Tuesday.