On April 13, Beijing time, the NBA regular season continued. The Los Angeles Lakers are playing on the road, and their opponent is the Memphis Grizzlies. The two sides fought fiercely until the last minute to decide the winner, and the Lakers relied on James' last-minute play to defeat the Grizzlies 123-120, ending the previous two consecutive defeats. The Lakers, who won this game, temporarily surpassed the Warriors and Kings and rose to the 8th place in the West.
Lakers (46-35): James 37 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists, Davis 36 points, 14 rebounds and 5 assists, Reaves 13 points, Hachimura 14 points.
Grizzlies (27-54): Pippen 28 points and 6 assists, LaRavia 28 points and 6 assists, Goodwin 23 points and 16 rebounds.
In the first half of the first quarter, the two sides went back and forth on the court, and the difference was not widened. Davis and Reaves scored seven straight points to give the Lakers a 23-19 lead at 3:26. The Grizzlies quickly caught up, and a three-pointer from G.G. Jackson helped them tie the game at 26. In the final two minutes, the Lakers went on an 8-0 run, and the Lakers led 34-26 at the end of the first quarter.
The Lakers continued to extend their advantage in the second quarter, with three-pointers from Prince and James giving them a 50-37 lead at 7:25 to 13. The Grizzlies went on a 12-2 run to reach 49-52 with just three points at 5:14. Hachimura hit two three-pointers to help the Lakers stabilize the situation. In the second half, the Grizzlies scored 7 points in a row and closed the score again. At halftime, the Lakers led 68-64.
In the first half of the third quarter, the Grizzlies made a three-point effort, Pippen made three three-pointers, and the Grizzlies outscored the Lakers by eight points at 85-77 halfway through the third quarter. In the second half, the Lakers gradually caught up, and a 9-0 wave allowed them to outrun the Grizzlies by one point at 2:06 at 94-93. At the end of the third quarter, the Lakers led 98-97.
The Lakers went on a 9-0 run in the final quarter to take an eight-point lead over the Grizzlies at 107-99. The Grizzlies scored six straight points to tie up 107-109 at 6:41. In the final 1:06, LaRavia made two free throws to help the Grizzlies take a 118-117 lead. At the critical moment, James scored six points in a row, and the Lakers ended the suspense of the game in the last 5.2 seconds 123-118. In the end, the game was over, and the Lakers narrowly won 123-120.