Royce O’Neale hits last-second 3 to lift short-handed Suns over Lakers, 113-110
PHOENIX (AP) — Royce O’Neale made a 3-pointer with 0.9 seconds remaining, Grayson Allen scored 28 points and the short-handed Phoenix Suns beat the Los Angeles Lakers 113-110 on Thursday night after blowing a late 12-point lead.
Allen drove into the lane on the Suns’ final possession before finding Collin Gillespie in the corner. Gillespie quickly swung the ball to an open O’Neale.
L.A.’s Austin Reaves missed an open corner 3 at the buzzer. Luka Doncic led the Lakers with 41 points, eight rebounds and eight assists.
Reaves’ miss capped a thrilling final few minutes.
The Lakers bounced back from a 12-point deficit with 6:28 left to tie it at 108 on Reaves’ 3-pointer with a minute to go. O’Neale responded with a layup after an offensive rebound to take a 110-108, but LeBron James had a tip-in on the ensuing possession to tie it at 110 with 22.7 seconds left.
Phoenix bounced back from a 13-point deficit early in the third quarter to tie it at 80 going into the fourth. Allen scored 16 points in the third, hitting four 3-pointers.
Gillespie made four 3-pointers in the fourth quarter and finished with 21 points. The Suns shot 22 of 50 (44%) from 3-point range.
The Lakers opened the second half on a 11-0 run for a 60-49 advantage, capped by DeAndre Ayton’s alley-oop dunk on a nice pass from Doncic.
The Suns improved to 2-3 since the All-Star break. Phoenix was playing without its top two scorers — All-Star guard Devin Booker (hip strain) and forward Dillon Brooks (fractured hand).
The Booker-Brooks duo is averaging roughly 45 points per game and the Suns are struggling to find scoring options without them. It was the first time the team topped 100 points in regulation over the past five games.
Up next
Lakers: At Golden State on Saturday night.
Suns: At Sacramento on Tuesday night.
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