BOSTON — Jaylen Brown scored 37 points, completing a tying three-point play with 4.1 seconds left in regulation and adding 11 more in overtime as the NBA-leading Boston Celtics snapped a three-game losing streak by beating the archrival Los Angeles Lakers 125-121 on Saturday night.
Brown added nine rebounds, Jayson Tatum had 30 points and 11 rebounds, and Malcolm Brogdon scored 15 of his 26 points in the second half of a seesaw game that had 19 lead changes — six in the fourth quarter — and 15 ties.
LeBron James had 41 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists for Los Angeles. Anthony Davis scored 16 points with 10 rebounds, coming off the bench for the second game in a row after missing 20 with a foot injury.
Patrick Beverley had 15 points, twice giving the Lakers the lead in the final minute of the fourth. But he also missed a foul shot that might have clinched it and was called for a technical on the contentious last play of regulation.
Beverley hit a 3-pointer to give the Lakers the lead with 52 seconds left and then, after Boston tied it, scored on a putback dunk that made it 104-102 with 19 seconds to play. But after Brown missed a 3, Beverly missed one of two free throws; Al Horford missed a 3, and Brown scored on the putback and picked up a delayed foul call.
One game after missing a pair of free throws in the final seconds of a one-point game, Brown hit this one to tie it 105-all with 4.1 seconds to play.
The Lakers had a chance to win it in regulation, and James drove to the basket. He missed the layup — and the referees missed Tatum swiping his arm on the shot. An enraged James gesticulated wildly, and Beverly picked up a technical foul in the ensuing hubbub.
In a pool report after the game, crew chief Eric Lewis admitted there was contact from Tatum on James’ drive.
“At the time, during the game, we did not see a foul,” Lewis said. “The crew missed the play.”
With Celtics Hall of Famer Paul Pierce cheering his former team on from the sideline and the teams’ broadcasters — Boston’s Cedric Maxwell and L.A.’s Mychal Thompson — talking trash on press row, the Celtics swept their longtime rivals in the two-game season series.
Boston (36-15) has the NBA’s best record despite losing its previous three games, including an overtime loss to the Knicks on Thursday night when Brown missed two free throws trailing by one with eight seconds left.
There was a vocal contingent of Lakers fans making noise when the visitors opened an 11-point lead in the third quarter. But they were out-shouted by the locals when Tatum, who scored 15 in the third, including three 3-pointers, helped erase an 11-point deficit.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Source: www.espn.com