Lakers get done in a grueling battle with the Knicks

For the last two weeks, the Lakers had held their own as well as moved all the way up the ranks to the third seed. On Thursday, they would face the Knicks, which was pretty interesting to watch, because there was so many key factors in this game. In the first half, the Lakers put Karl Anthony Towns in foul trouble, as Towns grabbed two fouls in the first seven minutes of the game. With KAT paying a little bit conservative, LA took advantage of it and got the ball into the painted area quicker. They finished the half with 15 transitional points. Despite, the Lakers getting out on the floor, they had some careless turnovers, which New York took advantage of.

New York gave the Lakers a taste of their own medicine as they got physical with LA and put their three-point snipers to work. They finished the half shooting the three around 32% and had a 60-51 lead. Coming out of the locker room, the Lakers said that they wanted to get back to Lakers' ball, get out there and run and stop forcing shots up. LeBron James and Luka tried to get their team back in the game, but they were getting man-handled in the paint. You would think big KAT would be the bully, but no, Jalen Brunson being the tank that kept the Knicks in front. Brunson had that give me the ball and get out my way vibe, each time he got the ball.

Each time it seemed like the Knicks was going to blow the game wide open, Dalton Knecht would connect the dots with a much needed three to cut the Knicks' lead to single digits. With five minutes left in regulation, LA went on a 10-4 run to cut the Knicks' lead to five. If you like playoff basketball, you had it with these two teams. Both teams traded baskets until Gabe Vincent hit a clutch three to put the Lakers up three with a minute left in regulation. The Knicks hit their free throws to tie up the game and sent it into overtime.

Back and forth, both teams went, and it just came down who had the ball last and made it count. James hit some clutch free throws to help the Lakers escape with a 113-109.