3 years ago
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SAN ANTONIO — For arsenic tooth-and-nail arsenic the evening had been, successful the end, the shot simply bounced into Anthony Davis’ hands.
Under unit from the Lakers’ Kent Bazemore, San Antonio’s Keita Bates-Diop mislaid power of his handle, and Davis coiled up with possession arsenic the seconds ticked disconnected successful overtime Tuesday nighttime astatine AT&T Center. The past moments of Davis’ 35-point nighttime were an casual glide distant from the Spurs, whose last champion effort collapsed.
The Lakers were abbreviated 1 of their stars with LeBron James sidelined by an ankle injury, but 2 proved to beryllium conscionable enough: Davis and Russell Westbrook combined for 68 points arsenic the Lakers improved to 2-2 with a amazingly epic 125-121 triumph successful their archetypal roadworthy crippled of the season.
After 3 games of tentative violative play, Westbrook was unleashed, scoring 12 of his tract goals successful the paint, and notching 15 points successful the 4th fourth an overtime alone. It felt similar a breakthrough for the Lakers — 1 that they request to continue.
“I told Russ, I said, ‘Whether I play, ‘Bron play, we don’t play, it doesn’t matter. You inactive gotta beryllium yourself,’” Davis said. “He did that tonight. The mode helium played contiguous was incredible. And we request that from him each night.”
It whitethorn beryllium adjacent much needed if Davis misses Wednesday nighttime successful Oklahoma City: The large antheral knocked knees with Dejounte Murray successful the closing seconds of the 4th fourth and grimaced arsenic helium grabbed his close leg, which helium aboriginal called “a small stinger.” He got up and played through, going connected to people a brace of buckets and 4 of his 17 rebounds successful the other period.
Vogel said the Lakers planned to show the wounded overnight, with much attraction erstwhile the squad landed successful Oklahoma City. James was already listed arsenic questionable for the contest.
“You’re inactive going disconnected of adrenaline and worldly close now,” Davis said afterward. “So you rest, past aftermath up, and each the adrenaline and worldly is gone, and your assemblage starts reacting to the pain.”
Three quarters through, the Spurs had fixed the Lakers plentifulness of symptom by pick-and-rolling them into oblivion, rallying for a 15-3 tally successful the last three-and-a-half minutes of the third.
The Lakers entered the 4th fourth trailing by 12 points, but they made up the quality with Westbrook and Davis carrying the scoring load. Davis took the pb successful the 4th for the archetypal clip with a jumper astatine the apical of the cardinal astatine the 7:11 mark, past Westbrook answered the Spurs’ follow-up 3-pointer with a pugnacious layup of his own.
For respective tense minutes, it seemed the Lakers mightiness person to decorativeness the crippled without Westbrook (10 rebounds, 8 assists) connected the floor. He stood tapping his toed astatine the scorer’s array with little than a infinitesimal left, but the Lakers could not substitute him into the crippled without a interruption successful the action.
“It was hard to watch,” Westbrook admitted with a tense laugh.
Still, they were poised to flight the arena with a triumph aft Malik Monk (17 points) squared up from 30 feet with 16 seconds inactive near connected the changeable clock, burying a agelong 3-pointer to enactment them ahead, 114-112. Said Monk: “I person unlimited range.”
But the Lakers’ inability to support San Antonio disconnected the violative solid outgo them again: After Jakob Poeltl gave them a immense interruption by missing a brace of escaped throws, the Lakers couldn’t corral the rebound, allowing Bates-Diop to people the game-tying points with 32.2 seconds left.
James’ lack created each kinds of holes, but possibly the astir glaring ones were connected defense: The Lakers’ operation crumbled without their injured wings. They mislaid tack of sharpshooters similar Lonnie Walker IV (5 for 7 from 3-point range) oregon gave up pick-and-roll drives to the 7-foot Poeltl (13 for 17, 27 points). The Spurs besides ran a amended way conscionable than the Lakers, beating them down the level for 29 fast-break points.
Vogel chalked up the mistakes to the continuing proceedings and mistake of a roster with 12 newcomers.
“Q batch of our coverages successful the overgarment are to onslaught the shot and descend the defender wrong and we were conscionable a measurement precocious connected a fewer of those situations,” helium said. “It’s challenging successful the infinitesimal but it’s decidedly going to sharpen america and it’s thing we invited and clasp and Poeltl putting unit connected america the mode helium did is going to fortify our team.
A nighttime earlier returning to his longtime location of Oklahoma City, Westbrook looked plentifulness spry portion motoring into the overgarment against the San Antonio defense. He finished 15 for 27 from the floor, helping powerfulness the Lakers to 72 points successful the paint. On different possessions, helium targeted teammates by the rim – notably uncovering DeAndre Jordan connected a brace of first-quarter alley-oops.
Westbrook adjacent recovered occurrence with his notoriously fickle leap shot, canning a fourth-quarter 3-pointer for a 107-104 lead.
A crippled removed from his 28-point effort to walk Moses Malone for ninth connected the NBA’s vocation scoring list, Carmelo Anthony was conspicuously quiescent connected the stat sheet. The 37-year aged scored conscionable 4 points disconnected the seat and was 1 for 7 from the field.
Murray had 21 points, 15 assists and 12 rebounds for his 5th vocation triple-double, and helium missed a jumper successful the closing seconds of regularisation that would person won it for the Spurs. Poeltl added 14 rebounds and Walker had a season-high 21 points.
Coming retired with their archetypal roadworthy triumph against those efforts has the Lakers’ assurance connected the rise.
“We ne'er mislaid belief, adjacent erstwhile we were down, that we were gong to triumph the game,” Vogel said. “Just persevered and got a immense roadworthy win.”
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