A 22-4 burst saves Lakers as NBA’s Western race heats up

In the ferocious battle for position in the Western Conference’s crowded middle tier – and even with an eye on the top – every ounce of effort has to be measured like the last drop of water in the desert. More importantly, teams must know when to use it. The Lakers found themselves in precisely that spot Tuesday night, needing to capitalize before the road ahead turns far more unforgiving.

After back-to-back wins over the Warriors and Kings in California, a third straight victory felt essential. The schedule is about to stiffen, and banking the more manageable games is critical when others are likely to slip away. They got it done. It was messy, tense and at times suffocating. But they got it done.

The final score read 110-101 after 48 minutes at Crypto Arena, where the Lakers improved to 37-24 and strengthened their grip on sixth place in the West. They now sit just one game behind Denver in fifth. As for New Orleans, coached by James Borrego, recent fight has not masked a bleak outlook.

A late surge rescues Los Angeles

There was little sparkle and plenty of inconsistency on both ends of the floor. The comeback materialized in the closing minutes of a game that simply could not be allowed to slip away – especially with the Denver Nuggets up next, followed by tough tests against the Knicks and Timberwolves and a mid-month back-to-back against the Rockets that will help shape the remainder of the regular season.

On this night, the Lakers struggled to string together positive possessions and contain a Pelicans team increasingly reliant on individual talent rather than a cohesive blueprint. They needed a desperate run – a 22-4 burst over six minutes – to seize control. Only then did the tunnel begin to brighten.

While Luka Doncic scored 27 points and LeBron James added 21 to lead the way, the pivotal moments belonged to Austin Reaves. He buried two crucial three-pointers in the decisive stretch, offsetting an otherwise brutal 0-for-7 showing from beyond the arc. The trio combined for 17 turnovers in a performance that lacked rhythm.

Zion Williamson provided the steadiest presence for New Orleans, even if his late decisions faltered. After sitting out against the Clippers following a loss to the Jazz, he returned with 24 points on 10-of-18 shooting. It was not enough.

Other NBA results

• Cavaliers 113 – Pistons 109
• Magic 126 – Wizards 109
• Hornets 117 – Mavericks 90
• Heat 124 – Nets 98
• Knicks 111 – Raptors 95
• Thunder 116 – Bulls 108
• Timberwolves 117 – Grizzlies 110
• Spurs 131 – Sixers 91

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Los Angeles Lakers

Stats

23 LeBron James
36 Marcus Smart
5 Deandre Ayton
77 Luka Dončić
15 Austin Reaves
18 Kobe Bufkin
28 Rui Hachimura
11 Jaxson Hayes
9 Bronny James Jr.
10 Luke Kennard
14 Maxi Kleber
4 Dalton Knecht
12 Jake LaRavia
1 Adou Thiero
2 Jarred Vanderbilt
30 Chris Mañon
3 Nick Smith Jr.
17 Drew Timme

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF
23 LeBron James	33	21	7	1	6	7	5	0	2	4/8	7/7	1/5	0	2
36 Marcus Smart	29	10	3	0	3	7	0	4	3	2/2	1/3	2/6	0	2
5 Deandre Ayton	25	13	8	3	5	1	2	0	2	1/1	6/8	0/0	0	4
77 Luka Dončić	37	27	10	0	10	7	7	0	1	4/5	7/12	3/10	0	2
15 Austin Reaves	36	15	8	0	8	3	5	2	2	5/5	2/8	2/7	0	3
18 Kobe Bufkin	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0
28 Rui Hachimura	18	2	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	2/2	0/0	0/4	0	1
11 Jaxson Hayes	22	8	6	4	2	1	0	0	2	2/2	3/4	0/0	0	1
9 Bronny James Jr.	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0
10 Luke Kennard	21	9	2	1	1	1	2	0	0	1/1	1/2	2/3	0	2
14 Maxi Kleber	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0
4 Dalton Knecht	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0
12 Jake LaRavia	14	5	2	2	0	2	0	1	0	0/0	1/2	1/2	0	0
1 Adou Thiero	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0
2 Jarred Vanderbilt	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0
30 Chris Mañon	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0
3 Nick Smith Jr.	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0
17 Drew Timme	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0

New Orleans Pelicans

Stats

41 Saddiq Bey
1 Zion Williamson
2 Herbert Jones
25 Trey Murphy III
5 Dejounte Murray
0 Jeremiah Fears
24 Jordan Hawkins
6 DeAndre Jordan
55 Kevon Looney
17 Karlo Matković
11 Bryce McGowens
21 Yves Missi
14 Micah Peavy
3 Jordan Poole
22 Derik Queen

Stats

	Min	Pts	TR	OR	DR	Ast	Los	Rec	Blk	S1	S2	S3	RF	CF
41 Saddiq Bey	36	18	5	0	5	3	2	2	0	2/2	5/9	2/9	0	0
1 Zion Williamson	33	24	4	2	2	0	2	1	0	4/5	10/18	0/0	0	4
2 Herbert Jones	33	2	6	2	4	5	1	4	0	0/0	1/3	0/4	0	2
25 Trey Murphy III	32	21	8	1	7	4	3	2	0	4/5	4/8	3/7	0	4
5 Dejounte Murray	27	15	8	0	8	8	3	1	1	3/3	3/7	2/6	0	3
0 Jeremiah Fears	18	5	0	0	0	2	4	0	0	0/0	1/3	1/3	0	2
24 Jordan Hawkins	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0
6 DeAndre Jordan	16	6	6	3	3	2	1	1	1	0/0	3/4	0/0	0	2
55 Kevon Looney	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0
17 Karlo Matković	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0
11 Bryce McGowens	16	6	1	0	1	1	0	1	0	2/2	2/3	0/0	0	3
21 Yves Missi	5	2	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0/0	1/3	0/0	0	0
14 Micah Peavy	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0
3 Jordan Poole	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0/0	0/0	0/0	0	0
22 Derik Queen	19	2	2	2	0	4	2	0	1	2/2	0/3	0/0	0	4