With the 7th seed and a playoff berth on the line, the Lakers survived a hard-fought game against Minnesota 108-102 to advance to the postseason and a first round series vs. the Memphis Grizzlies.
After playing weeks of must-win games, the stakes of this game were familiar to both the Lakers and the Timberwolves, but it was Minnesota took control of the action early to put the Lakers on their heels. Down two of their best defensive players, the Timberwolves’ new starting group skewed much more towards the offensive side of the ball, and they did an excellent job of getting into their sets and creating good shots.
Led by Karl Anthony-Towns (24 points, 8-12 shooting) and Mike Conley (23 points, 7-11 shooting), Minnesota led by as many as 15 points by taking and making their outside shots — particularly in the 1st half. The T’Wolves went 9-17 from deep in the first two quarters, with Taurean Prince (2-2), Kyle Anderson (1-2), and Nickeil Alexander-Walker (1-2) helping them take an 11-point lead into intermission.
It was in the next 24 minutes that things really changed, however. After surrendering 60 points in the first two quarters, the Lakers defense met the moment in the 2nd half by holding Minnesota to only 38 points in the third and fourth quarters combined. After getting Towns into foul trouble in the 3rd quarter, the Lakers were able to better dictate the terms of engagement defensively, doing a much better job of closing down the three-point line, and funneling everything towards LeBron (2) and Anthony Davis (3) who combined for five blocked shots (and with AD showing again his expert ability to protect the paint).
Those defensive stops enabled the Lakers to get out in transition for some easier baskets and allowed them to string together enough positive offensive possessions in the half court to climb back into the game. It was not always pretty, but the Lakers scratched and clawed their way to timely baskets to put the pressure back onto Minnesota to find ways to score or lose their lead entirely — which they ultimately did, though it took them nearly the entire 48 minutes to do so.
With 2:02 left in the game, LeBron was able to tie the game at 95 a piece with a massive pull up three pointer from the right wing. James, whose 30 points (12-21 shooting) led the team, was nails on his outside jumper most the night (3-6 from deep), but none was bigger than this one that tied the game late.
Then, after several possessions where neither team could puncture the other’s defense to take a lead, the Lakers forced a turnover with 21.7 seconds left and the chance to run the clock all the way down for one final shot. As the clock ticked down, the Lakers ran a pick-and-roll for LeBron to drive right where he was able to turn the corner, get to the rim, and then kick the ball to Dennis Schröder for an open three pointer that he canned with only 1.4 seconds left on the clock.
Of course, we wouldn’t be talking about overtime if that’s how the game ended. With such little time on the clock, the Wolves did well to inbound the ball and find Conley in the right corner for a last second heave. AD, caught underneath the basket defensively, saw the ball going Conley’s way and raced to the corner to contest the shot. In leaping towards Conley, however, AD’s momentum carried him into the shooter for a shooting foul. Conley would sink all three free throws to send the game to OT.
The Lakers mostly controlled the extra period, however, outscoring the T’Wolves by six by seizing the action early. An early Rui Hachimura three-pointer gave them a cushion they would never surrender, with their lead oscillating between three and five points most of the bonus session before a final AD free throw pushed the game to its final margin.
Overall, this was a great team victory that showed the resiliency the team has had all season. Beyond LeBron’s great scoring night, AD was also wonderful on that side of the ball with 24 points and 15 rebounds — including nine on the offensive glass. Davis was fantastic in paint on both sides of the ball and a late basket of his own on a tough finish inside gave the team some breathing room down the stretch of OT.
And while Dennis’ big shot didn’t win the game as it could have, the Lakers certainly aren’t victorious without his spirited play and general tenacity in the 2nd half. After suffering a bit of an ankle tweak in the first half, Dennis scored 18 of his 21 points in the 2nd half and OT while playing his typical hard-nosed defense in both his primary matchup and when finding himself switched onto a bigger opponent.
And so, the Lakers are playoff bound and will get some much-needed rest and several days off before beginning their first round series in Memphis against the Grizzlies on Sunday.
