Lakers use ‘Game 7 mentality,’ oust Grizzlies in 40-point win

LOS ANGELES — LeBron James vowed to be better for Friday’s Game 6 of the Los Angeles Lakers‘ first-round series against the Memphis Grizzlies.

He kept his word, and his teammates kept up the pressure on the Grizzlies from the opening tip, destroying the No. 2-seeded Grizzlies 125-85 to win the series 4-2.

It took James 17 shots to make five in Game 5. On Friday, he made seven of his first eight, punctuating a dominant first-half performance with a two-handed reverse dunk in transition.

“It was definitely a Game 7 mentality for us,” James said after the game. “We understood that we had an opportunity to play in front of our fans, and we wanted to try to end it tonight.”

It felt like they ended it by halftime. L.A. led by 17 at the break and James had 16 points, one more than his Game 5 total. He finished with 22 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds and made history in the process, winning the 40th playoff series of his career and tying Derek Fisher for the most all time.

“He’s playing with a sense of urgency,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said of the 20-year veteran before the game. “He knows there’s only so many more of these [postseason runs] he’s going to be able to participate in. So he’s definitely been in the moment.”

The second half of Game 6 was merely an extended celebration for the Crypto.com Arena crowd, with the Lakers leading by as many as 40. The cheers were a long time coming, as the franchise completed its first home win to close out a playoff series since 2012, when it beat the Denver Nuggets in Game 7 in the first round.

Getting in on the redemption act with James was Lakers point guard D’Angelo Russell. After going 4-for-11 in Wednesday’s loss in Memphis, he was 5-for-8 in the first quarter alone. Russell finished with a game-high 31 points on 12-for-17 shooting, setting a new career playoff high in scoring. He broke out of a playoff slump in a big way, having never shot 50% or better in a postseason game before.

“To finally make some is definitely a good feeling, but the win was better, to be honest,” Russell said afterward.

And he did it with Kyrie Irving, James’ old Cleveland Cavaliers running mate, sitting courtside directly across from the Lakers’ bench.

Seemingly everything went the Lakers’ way Friday. Their offense shot 53.8% from the field. Their defense held Memphis to 30.2%.

“I told them after the game, we set a standard for ourselves defensively on how we have to play and what we have to do on the defensive side of the ball,” Ham said.

Austin Reaves played the floor game he has become beloved for in L.A., putting up 11 points, 8 assists and 6 rebounds. Jarred Vanderbilt helped harass Grizzlies star Ja Morant into a 3-for-16 shooting night while going 3-for-8 on 3-points for nine points…