Lakers rally to beat Knicks in OT for 8th straight win

LOS ANGELES — Even during their best winning streak in several years, the Lakers haven’t had their “best stuff,” as Austin Reaves put it last week.

But they have been finding ways to win – a trend that continued on Thursday night when they rallied to beat the New York Knicks, 113-109 in overtime, for their eighth consecutive win.

Luka Doncic led the Lakers with 32 points, 12 assists, seven rebounds and four steals, opening the extra period with a fadeaway 14-footer and a pull-up 3-pointer for a five-point advantage (104-99) as the Lakers (40-21) improved to 9-2 since he made his Lakers debut on Feb. 10.

LeBron James finished with 31 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists. The league’s all-time leading scorer made a clutch 3-pointer to tie the score at 96-all late in regulation after the Lakers trailed for 32 consecutive minutes.

Reaves, who returned on Thursday after missing the previous two games with a strained left calf, struggled in his first game since playing nine minutes in last Friday’s home win against the Clippers. The fourth-year guard finished with eight points on 2-of-13 shooting.

But after Jalen Brunson cut the Lakers’ lead to 105-104 in overtime, Reaves knocked down a corner 3-pointer – the only one he made in seven attempts – that was assisted by center Jaxson Hayes in the short roll out of a pick-and-roll with James to put the Lakers ahead by four with 2:40 left in the extra period.

Brunson finished with a game-high 39 points on 13-of-26 shooting (12 for 13 from the free-throw line) to go with 10 assists for a double-double, but the All-Star guard left the game with 1:24 left after turning his right ankle on Reaves while driving to the basket.

The All-Star guard made a pair of free throws to tie the score at 107-all before the Knicks (40-22) intentionally fouled to allow him to exit the game and head back to the locker room.

Hayes made a pair of free throws to put the Lakers ahead 109-107 with 59.7 seconds remaining.

After Karl-Anthony Towns committed an offensive foul while trying to grab a rebound over James, the 22-year NBA veteran made a pair of free throws for a 111-107 lead.

James grabbed a defensive rebound after OG Anunoby missed a free throw after drawing a shooting foul on a layup he made to cut the Lakers’ lead to 111-109. The four-time league MVP then made another pair of free throws to seal the win.

The Lakers, who have won 20 of 24 games dating to Jan. 15, trailed for most of the second half, with their offense going cold – especially from behind the arc – after a strong start.

The Lakers were down by 13 in the third quarter and 10 midway through the fourth, but when they needed them most, their 3-point shots fell. They shot 7 for 15 from long range in the fourth quarter and overtime after going 7 for 27 in the first three quarters.

Gabe Vincent (12 points) made a pair of 3-pointers in the final six minutes of regulation, including a 27-footer that cut the Lakers’ deficit to 94-93 with less than three minutes in the fourth. Vincent’s 3-pointer with 1:21 left in regulation capped a 19-6 run and gave the Lakers a 99-96 advantage.

Rookie Dalton Knecht (11 points, four rebounds) also helped keep the Lakers’ offense afloat late.

More to come on this story.