Despite losing Luka Dončić in the first half, the Lakers used a vintage Austin Reaves performance and strong play from the bench to earn a comeback win against the Sixers, 119-115.
Luka left the game late in the second quarter and was ruled out for the contest with left leg soreness. Reaves picked up the slack with 35 points off the bench as he eases back into action from his injury.
The Lakers committed 22 turnovers leading to 24 Philly points. However, they outscored the Sixers 61-14 in bench points. A
strong second-half defensive effort got them back into the game after trailing by as many as 14.
The game began poorly for the hosts as they were ice cold offensively. They went on a three-minute scoring drought until Deandre Ayton converted on a hook shot. Joel Embiid was already in double figures with 10 points. Ayton and Luka Dončić combined for eight points.
At the 5:12 mark, Los Angeles was down by 10.
Rui Hachimura drained a much-needed 3-pointer to stop some of the bleeding. The Lakers were playing very sloppily, turning the ball over seven times. Maxi Kleber saw some playing time because of Jaxson Hayes’ suspension and threw down an emphatic slam.
LA picked up some steam at the end of the first, making it just a six-point deficit after Philly’s lead had grown to 11.
The second period began with Austin Reaves converting on a layup. Los Angeles had cut the deficit to two thanks to their improved offense. The Sixers responded with a quick 6-0 run to cushion their lead, opening it up to seven points at the four-minute mark.
LA started the quarter shooting 50% from the field, but it dropped as they started missing shots again. Luka was the only Laker in double figures with 10, but he was having a rough night, shooting 3-10 in the half so far.
At the 3:03 mark, Luka limped back to the locker room and did not return to the game. Reaves gave the team some life by scoring seven points, but it wasn’t enough as Los Angeles’s lack of defense was hindering them. Embiid was now at 20 points.
At halftime, the purple and gold were down by eight.
The Sixers went on a quick 6-0 scoring run to start the third period, prompting an immediate Lakers timeout. Los Angeles eventually responded well, cutting the deficit back to single digits thanks to the efforts of Ayton, Hachimura and Jake LaRavia.
Embiid continued his strong play, scoring five points to push his total to 25. He was the only player for either team with at least 20 points. The Lakers then countered well again, scoring seven points in a row to pull back into the game.
Philly responded again with Embiid and Maxey combining for nine points. Reaves then took over the scoring for LA with six points to jump-start another momentum shift in favor of the Lakers. A 7-0 Lakers run made it a two-point game.
Trendon Watford scored four for the Sixers. Hachimura’s seven points kept it a two-point affair going into the fourth period.
Reaves drained two straight 3-pointers to put the Lakers in the lead to start the final frame. Momentum had completely shifted to the purple and gold as the 76ers missed shots they were making consistently earlier in the game.
At the 9:02 mark, LA was up by six.
After a combined four points from Jarred Vanderbilt and LeBron, the Sixers were forced to call a timeout as the lead was growing for Los Angeles. Out of the break, Kelly Oubre Jr. converted on two free throws.
Marcus Smart knocked down back-to-back triples. Kleber was putting in a lot of great work with three offensive rebounds, three assists and three steals.
LeBron added another four points to the offensive onslaught by the Lakers. Still, the Sixers were keeping just within reach after another late run. It was now a nervous time for LA after they had taken control of the game.
Smart connected with LeBron for a dunk. On the other end, VJ Edgecombe dunked as well. Reaves was fouled and converted on both free throws, giving them some more cushion on their lead.
The final minute got chaotic as Philly scored a layup to make it six-point game before Edgecome stole the in-bounds and hit a 3-pointer while falling out of bounds to make it a three-point game with just over 30 seconds left.
After Smart knocked down a free throw, LA was up by four with 34.5 seconds left. Maxey scored on a floater, but on the other end, Kleber found Hachimura under the basket for a dunk that sealed the win.
Key Player Stats
In his first game at home in over a month, Reaves looked back to his early-season self with 35 points on 12-17 shooting overall and 5-8 shooting from range in 25 minutes.
Luka left the game in the first half with left leg soreness. He finished with 10 points, four rebounds and two assists. LeBron scored nine points with 10 assists.
Ayton notched 10 points with six rebounds. Hachimura scored 14 points with seven rebounds. Jake LaRavia had 14 points.
Kleber had a hugely impactful game with four points, four offensive rebounds, four assists and three steals. Vanderbilt notched six points with six rebounds in 23 minutes.
The Lakers’ next matchup will be against the Golden State Warriors on Saturday at 5:30 PM PT.You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.
