Lakers overcome Anthony Davis’ ‘brain fart,’ defeat Timberwolves in OT to secure No. 7 seed
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The Los Angeles Lakers’ rally against the Minnesota Timberwolves in Tuesday night’s play-in game was nearly wasted thanks to Anthony Davis’ blunder on the final play of regulation.
Dennis Schröder appeared to have secured the victory for the Lakers when he took LeBron James’ pass and hit a tie-breaking 3-pointer with just 1.1 seconds to go. But Davis fouled Mike Conley on a 3-point attempt with just .1 second showing on the clock and the Timberwolves veteran knocked down all three free throws to force overtime.
Thankfully for Davis, the Lakers controlled overtime and won 108-102 to secure the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference. He and his teammates were able to have a laugh about his error after the game.
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Walking through the final sequence of regulation in his on-court interview with TNT, James teased Davis, saying “it’s unfortunate that AD had a brain fart and messed (Schröder’s) game-winner up.”
Davis came over to offer up a public apology to Schröder. “I messed his game-winner up, I apologize. I definitely apologize,” Davis said.
James had 30 points and 10 rebounds and Schröder scored 21 points and iced the win with two free throws with 8.4 seconds left in OT. Davis had 24 points and 15 rebounds. The Lakers rallied from a 15-point deficit in the second half, limiting the Timberwolves to just 12 points in the fourth quarter and four in overtime.
The Lakers will play the No. 2 seed Memphis Grizzlies in the first round of the playoffs.
“This is what our sport is all about, getting to April and having an opportunity to play in the postseason,” James said. “We’ve been battle-tested all year. Especially since the (All-Star) break we’ve played some really good basketball. That’s a good-ass team over there in Minnesota no matter who they had in the lineup.”
Missing for Minnesota was Rudy Gobert, who was suspended for Tuesday’s play-in game by the team after he punched teammate Kyle Anderson during the Timberwolves’ regular-season finale, and Jaden McDaniels, who is out indefinitely with a broken hand after he punched a wall in frustration Sunday. The Timberwolves play the winner of the New Orleans Pelicans-Oklahoma City Thunder play-in game on Friday in Minneapolis. The winner of that contest will secure the No. 8 seed.
Contributing: Associated Press
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Lakers overcome Anthony Davis’ ‘brain fart,’ defeat Timberwolves in OT to secure No. 7 seed