LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Lakers rallied from a 13-point, second-half deficit to beat the New York Knicks 113-109 in an additional time thriller Thursday evening.
The Lakers, winners of eight straight and 20 of their final 24, improved to 40-21 and maintained their No. 2 spot within the Western Convention. The Knicks dropped to 40-22 and are No. 3 within the East.
On an evening when the Lakers’ supporting solid struggled to make pictures via three quarters the group was carried by superstars Luka Dončić (32 factors, seven rebounds and 12 assists) and LeBron James (31 factors, 12 rebounds and eight assists).
New York’s Jalen Brunson, who suffered an ankle harm with 1:24 left in additional time and exited the sport after making each free throws, had 39 factors and 10 assists.
The Knicks offense stagnated within the fourth quarter, scoring solely 15 factors because the Lakers rallied from an 8-point deficit. Gabe Vincent and James mixed to make 5 3-pointers over the ultimate 5:59, serving to L.A. flip that 8-point deficit right into a 99-96 lead with 1:21 left. However two possessions later, Brunson drove and linked on an and-1 to tie the rating at 99 with 46.1 seconds left.
The Lakers missed two 3-pointers — one by Dorian Finney-Smith and one by James — after which stifled the Knicks on the ultimate possession. Los Angeles pressured Brunson to catch a move close to half courtroom and doubled him, leading Brunson to pass to Josh Hart. Hart then confronted a wave of defenders, placing the ball on the ground and attempting to get a shot up as time expired.
The Lakers carried their momentum into additional time, the place Dončić drilled back-to-back jumpers over Knicks heart Karl-Anthony Cities — one midrange jumper close to the free-throw line and a stepback 27-foot 3-pointer on the left wing — to offer the Lakers a 104-99 lead. The Knicks briefly tied the rating at 107 on the free throws after Brunson’s harm, however the Lakers largely managed additional time.
Luka with the moonshot in OT! pic.twitter.com/MlylTwP501
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) March 7, 2025
The Knicks’ bizarre 2025 continued with their second straight loss, dropping them to 17-12 because the flip of the calendar yr, however that pales compared to what occurred to Brunson in additional time.
New York’s captain went up for a layup within the recreation’s closing minutes and got here down in ache, holding his proper ankle. He stayed down for some time and was examined by a group coach, head coach Tom Thibodeau and his father/assistant coach Rick Brunson. As soon as he bought up, Brunson struggled to place stress on his ankle. He shot the free throws, then hobbled to the locker room.
After the sport, Thibodeau stated Brunson was being examined.
How the Lakers pulled off their comeback
Hours earlier than the comeback win, coach JJ Redick stated issues had popped up in the course of the group’s then-seven-game win streak that he felt opponents would possibly exploit.
These worries have been validated for a lot of the sport, with the Knicks grabbing 14 offensive rebounds and forcing 16 Lakers turnovers and Brunson basically dominating the Lakers protection all night. All three have been factors of emphasis for Los Angeles coming into the sport. All three went towards it.
However the group’s fourth-quarter rally confirmed the resilience it has developed over the previous seven weeks to go 20-4 and have one of the best file within the league over that span. The Lakers have withstood check after check from a number of good and nice opponents.
Thursday’s rally additionally confirmed L.A.’s elevated margin for error — one thing Redick and James stated this group didn’t have earlier than the Dončić commerce — with Dončić and James enjoying collectively. The Lakers offense was capable of generate a slew of excellent appears, manipulating the Knicks protection till discovering the appropriate mismatch to take advantage of in crucial moments.
A lot has gone proper for the Lakers recently that it felt like one thing inevitably needed to go fallacious quickly. However for at the least another recreation, they discovered a method to overcome no matter obstacles have been thrown their approach. — Jovan Buha, Lakers beat author
What went fallacious for the Knicks?
New York led a lot of the evening, however its struggling offense continued to point out itself. The Knicks went 10 of 43 from 3. They’ve struggled to shoot the ball since Jan. 1, rating within the backside six within the league in 3-point proportion.
Their offense spent the primary half of the season as probably the most environment friendly offenses in basketball, however issues have modified over the previous 30 video games or so. New York is also close to the underside of the NBA in 3-point makes an attempt because the starting of the calendar yr.
The Knicks’ capturing struggles and lack of creators exterior of Brunson have taken a toll on the group down the season’s closing stretch. These elements have been crucial to the Lakers’ capacity to tug off their comeback. — James L. Edwards III, Knicks beat author
Required studying
- How Jalen Brunson’s ankle injury could torpedo Knicks’ offense ahead of playoffs
- How Luka Dončić, Jimmy Butler have shaken up NBA Western Conference
- Knicks have a 3-point-line problem, and it showed in loss to Warriors
- NBA Power Rankings: Everybody but the Thunder and Cavs is jockeying for position
(Picture of Luka Dončić: Meg Oliphant / Getty Pictures)
