The Los Angeles Lakers were on the brink of going back to Memphis tied at 2-2 in their first-round series against the Grizzlies. But LeBron James came through when it mattered most and the Lakers are now on the brink of advancing to the second round with a 3-1 series lead.
James became the oldest player in NBA history to record a 20-point, 20-rebound game, finishing with 22 points, 20 rebounds and seven assists including the game-tying layup with 0.8 seconds in regulation as the Lakers defeated the Grizzlies 117-111 in overtime.
The Lakers trailed by seven points with 5:13 remaining following a Desmond Bane 3-pointer but fought back thanks to a huge stretch from D’Angelo Russell. The Lakers’ point guard made three straight 3-pointers to get the team right back in the game before fouling out with around two minutes remaining.
The Grizzlies took a two-point lead on a Bane layup after Dennis Schroder’s shot was blocked by Jaren Jackson Jr., but LeBron would respond with a high-arcing layup and Anthony Davis blocked Ja Morant at the buzzer to send the game to overtime. In the extra period, it was LeBron and Davis who came up with multiple big plays down the stretch. LeBron would drive by Dillon Brooks for a bucket and a foul to ice the game for the Lakers late.
Austin Reaves actually led the Lakers in scoring on the night with 23 points to go along with four rebounds and six assists while Russell finished with 17 and Jarred Vanderbilt added 15 points and six rebounds. Davis struggled offensively all night while also dealing with a hip issue after being kneed in the first half, finishing with just 12 points on 4-of-13 shooting.
But five of those points came in overtime and Davis also added 11 rebounds, four blocks and two steals as he still made an impact elsewhere. Rui Hachimura finally had his first off-night of the series as had just seven points, but Dennis Schroder stepped up with 12 big points off the bench for the Lakers.
The Lakers’ defense was on point for much of the night as they held Morant to just 19 points on 8-of-24 shooting, but Desmond Bane had his best game of the series with 36 points to lead Memphis. The Lakers held the Grizzlies as a team to just 39.6% shooting from the field and 21.4% from deep, but Memphis made up for it with 16 offensive rebounds leading to 24 second-chance points.
Next up for the Lakers
The Lakers will look to close out this series on Wednesday night in Game 5 in Memphis. If the Grizzlies win, Game 6 will be on Friday night back in Los Angeles at the Crypto.com Arena with a potential Game 7 being set for Sunday if necessary.
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