A heave from 62 feet changes the night
Portland had the Lakers on the ropes. The Trail Blazers led by as many as 16 in the first half and still held a 60-53 edge at the break, until Luka Doncic launched a 62-foot three-quarter-court shot at the halftime buzzer. It dropped. The Lakers walked off down seven instead of ten, and the second half belonged to the Slovenian.
Doncic finished with a season-high 53 points on 17-for-33 shooting in a 124-118 win on Friday. It was his 11th career 50-point game, tying him for 10th on the NBA’s all-time list, and his fourth straight game with at least 40 points. He has crossed that mark six times in nine games this season.
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Third-quarter surge flips the game
Ziaire Williams hit a three with 4:23 left in the third to give Los Angeles its first lead since the opening basket, 71-68. That shot capped a 17-0 run. Doncic scored 20 of the Lakers’ 34 points in the quarter, more than the 15 Portland managed, and Los Angeles took an 87-75 lead into the fourth with Doncic already on 40.
Portland cut it to 95-89 with a 10-0 burst, but Jake LaRavia and Austin Reaves hit back-to-back threes to restore a 103-91 lead. Damian Lillard’s two free throws made it 114-110 with 50.8 seconds left, and Doncic answered with a floater at 27.7 seconds to push past 50.
Support cast and the standings
Reaves added 25 points, and Walker Kessler had 16 points and 12 rebounds as the Lakers avenged a loss in Portland last week. They have won four straight and stand 1-1 in NBA Cup group play. Deni Avdija posted 22 points, nine rebounds and 11 assists for Portland, Lillard also scored 22, and Toumani Camara and Donovan Clingan chipped in 18 and 17. The Blazers’ three-game winning streak ended, only their second loss of the season, and their first in four games since Ja Morant went down with a hamstring injury.
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