Heading into Indiana, the Los Angeles Lakers have eyes on Lebron James chasing immortality, with him chipping away at Kareem Abdul Jabbar’s all-time scoring record that has stood for almost 40 years.
More importantly, the Lakers are trying to string together a few wins before the all-star break to get their season back on track. They are trying to come within striking distance in the second half of the season to get back into the playoffs after missing out last year.
After trailing in the first three quarters, the Lakers clamped down on defense in the fourth to beat the Indiana Pacers, 112-111 in Indiana, Friday morning (Manila time).
The improbable comeback
The Pacers were leading by double digits in the second and third quarter behind some excellent shooting by Aaron Nesmith and Miles Turner. Tyrese Haliburton’s return from injury also gave a much needed spark to the team.
The Lakers didn’t make it easy for themselves as Russel Westbrook had a poor shooting night, making only 2 of 16 from the field. They also performed poorly on the free throw line, making 22 of 31 shots for 71 percent.
Luckily, their inefficiency didn’t punish the Lakers much as Westbrook had 10 assists while the Pacers went to the free throw line only six times, making five shots.
Not getting to the free throw line as much didn’t sit well with newly minted All-Star Haliburton, who was interviewed after the game, offering some doubts on the officiating and the Lakers defensive prowess.
Lakers take the 4th
It all went downhill for the Pacers in the fourth quarter as they were limited to 15 points. They didn’t score in the first eight minutes while the Lakers cut the lead to six points after being down by as much as 14 points in the beginning of the final quarter.
Aeron Nesmith broke the scoreless drought by hitting a three-pointer to get the Pacer’s lead back up to 9. With the score at 101-92 in favor of the Pacers, Dennis Schroder and Westbrook made four straight free throws to cut the lead to five.
Anthony Davis, who has been on limited game time due to his recent return from injury, then came back for the Lakers from the bench to help complete the comeback, with 5 minutes left in the game.
He ended up scoring two straight buckets to cut the lead to four before Patrick Beverly hit a three-pointer to put the Lakers the closest it had been the entire game, with a one point deficit.
James hit a three-point shot to complete a 10-0 run and give the Lakers its first lead with only two minutes left in the game. The Pacers finally scored with a three-pointer from Buddy Hield to take the lead back, setting up for an exciting finish.
Davis wins it
After Andrew Nembhard made a shot with 49 seconds left, Davis made a patented turn around jumper for the lead and the final scoreline.
Davis would also end up with the defensive rebound after the Pacer’s last ditch effort clanked out of the rim, after three failed attempts to get a good shot in at the buzzer.
Anthony Davis led all scorers with 31 points and 14 rebounds for the Lakers, while Lebron James had 26 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists to continue his chase to join the all-time scoring list.
He only needs 63 points to catch Kareem Abdul Jabbar.
Tyrese Haliburton led the Pacers with 26 points and 12 assists, and saw two others score 20 points or more. Myles Turner pitched in 20 points and Aaron Nesmith had 24 points.
The Lakers will hope to continue their momentum when they visit the New Orleans Pelicans, while the Pacers will welcome the Sacramento Kings next.
