LeBron James pushes Lakers over the line in wild OT win over Timberwolves
Los Angeles, California - LeBron James led the way as the Los Angeles Lakers rallied from a 15-point deficit to clinch their NBA playoffs spot with a 108-102 overtime win over the short-handed Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday.
James finished with 30 points on 12-of-21 shooting with 10 rebounds, six assists, and two blocks, including sinking a crucial three-pointer to tie the game up 95-95 with 2:03 left in regulation time.
The four-time MVP drove to the basket and kicked out a pass to Denis Schroder to drain a potential game-winning three-pointer to put the Lakers up by three with 1.4 seconds left, only for Anthony Davis to foul Mike Conley on an ambitious three-point attempt.
The Timberwolves veteran guard showed composure to hit all three free-throws, sending the game to overtime, but his team was undone by four OT turnovers, totaling for 24 for the game. They also scored only 16 points after leading 86-79 at three-quarter time.
The Lakers, who were 25-30 at the trade deadline before shuffling their roster and storming into the play-in tournament, secure the seven seed and will face the Memphis Grizzlies in the playoffs first round.
Minnesota, who were missing the suspended Rudy Gobert and injured Jaden McDaniels, will take on the winner of the New Orleans Pelicans-Oklahoma City Thunder play-in game for the right to take the eight seed.
Schroder and Davis do their part for the Lakers
Veteran LA guard Schroder was excellent off the bench with 21 points from 32 minutes, including shooting three-of-four from beyond the arc. Davis added 24 points with 15 rebounds and three blocks.
Conley was exceptional for the Timberwolves with 23 points, making six-of-eight from three-point range with four rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Karl-Anthony Towns scored 24 points with 11 rebounds and three blocks in Gobert's absence after the French center swung a punch at teammate Kyle Anderson during at timeout in their final regular season game, leading to a team-imposed suspension.
Anthony Edwards had a game to forget, shooting three-of-17 from the field, but missing all nine of his attempts from the three-point range for nine points with eight rebounds.
Cover photo: USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect