By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
LOS ANGELES (AFP) — Anthony Davis led a stunning late fightback as the Los Angeles Lakers overturned a 19-point fourth quarter deficit to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks, 128-124, in double overtime on Tuesday, March 26.
With LeBron James ruled out through injury, a banged-up Davis spent nearly 52 minutes on court to rally the Lakers to victory against an in-form Bucks side who went into the clash on a six-game winning streak.
Davis finished with 34 points, 23 rebounds and two assists while also making four blocks in a towering defensive display.
The Lakers veteran was backed offensively by Austin Reaves and D’Angelo Russell, who both finished with 29 points apiece.
Reaves bagged only the second triple-double of his career, with 14 rebounds and 10 assists to go alongside his 29 points.
Milwaukee meanwhile were left wondering where it all went wrong after leading the game from the start of the first quarter until the Lakers tied it up at 101-101 courtesy of two free throws from Taurean Prince with 44 seconds remaining.
Two see-saw periods of overtime saw the lead go back and forth until a 28-foot Reaves three-pointer and two free throws from Russell gave the Lakers a decisive 126-121 advantage with 14 seconds remaining.
Malik Beasley’s three-pointer closed the gap to two points for Milwaukee but two more Davis free throws sealed victory.
“That was a hell of a team win right there,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said afterwards.
“The guys did it — they banded together once again and competed their asses off. It was a great way to start off a six-game road trip.”
Reaves meanwhile saluted Davis’ battling performance. The 31-year-old was clearly struggling for mobility for much of the game after injuring a knee in a collision with Milwaukee’s Khris Middleton.
“He just wanted to continue to battle with us,” Reaves said of Davis. “Any time he’s on the court he’s making an impact.”
‘A good lesson’
Giannis Antetokounmpo led Milwaukee’s scorers with 29 points while Damian Lillard finished with 27.
Milwaukee coach Doc Rivers meanwhile said his team paid the price for not putting the game out of reach after twice opening up double-digit leads.
“When you have team down 18 points, you have a chance to take that lead to 30, and we didn’t do that,” Rivers said.
“Instead we let it go from 18 to 10; and that gave them hope. It will be a good lesson for us.”
The victory leaves the Lakers firmly on track for at least a place in the play-in tournament. The Lakers are ninth in the Western Conference with a 40-32 record. The Bucks remain second in the Eastern Conference despite falling to 46-26.
In other games on Tuesday, the Golden State Warriors boosted their hopes of reaching the postseason with a huge 113-92 victory over the Miami Heat on the road.
Klay Thompson produced 28 points off the bench, including six three-pointers, while Jonathan Kuminga added 18. Stephen Curry and Andrew Wiggins added 17 apiece as the Warriors improved to 37-34 to remain 10th in the West.
In New Orleans meanwhile, Oklahoma City Thunder kept up the pressure on Western Conference leaders Denver with a 119-112 win over the Pelicans.
Zion Williamson finished with 29 points and 10 assists for New Orleans, but the Thunder’s balanced offense saw them home for a win which leaves them half a game back from Denver in the West at 50-21.
Jalen Williams finished with 26 points, while Josh Giddey added 25 and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 24 for the Thunder.
