SAN ANTONIO —
Recap
First quarter
The Spurs got themselves into an early hole as Russell Westbrook threw a number of lobs that were thrown down by Anthony Davis and DeAndre Jordan. Keldon Johnson drew the difficult assignment of checking Davis, and Jakob Poeltl did manage to block the star big man.
San Antonio played tough interior defense otherwise, and a transition three by Lonnie Walker IV shaved the Lakers' lead to 17-12.
The Spurs' defense took things up a notch in the second half of the quarter, forcing turnovers and running in transition to finish the quarter on a 17-10 run, leading 29-27 at the end.
Second quarter
Thad Young got into the action, and brought a level of intensity to his screening and rebounding. He also made a perfect bounce pass to Derrick White on a backdoor cut for an easy deuce.
Los Angeles was able to build a six-point lead based on shots right at the rim and from beyond the arc.
The Spurs collected themselves and went on their own run, and Devin Vassell knocked down his second triple of the game, leading the team with 11 points.
A three from Dejounte Murray tied the game at 56. After some Lakers free throws, Murray took and made another open trey to put the Spurs in front.
In the closing moments of the half, Lonnie Walker IV accounted for a six-point swing as he blocked a triple before leaking out and drilling a three of his own.
Third quarter
The Spurs pressured Anthony Davis into a steal, then found Derrick White wide open in transition for three.
Doug McDermott had started the game shooting 0-6, but gave the Spurs the lead on a cutting dunk that drew a timeout from Los Angeles.
Things got a little weird as a Laker pulling down Keldon turned into a foul on the Spurs, which turned into Gregg Popovich yelling at a referee, which turned into a tech on San Antonio's bench.
Los Angeles got back in the lead, but Lonnie evened it up at 82 with another three. Then he caught in the corner and made it 85-82. After a stop, he caught it in the same spot and made it a 9-0 Lonnie Walker IV run in 1:05. Then he earned free throws to make it an 11-0 personal run.
Dejounte Murray put back a missed thee and gave the Spurs a 10-point lead, their largest of the game. The Lakers stopped the run with a thre, but Vassell knocked down an off balance three of his own and then stole a pass en route to a transition layup. that gave the Spurs a 97-85 advantage heading into the final 12 minutes.
Fourth quarter
Drew Eubanks and Dejounte Murray combined to play solid in the pick and roll on both ends of the floor, disrupting Los Angeles and getting the shots they wanted.
Anthony Davis came back in the game and bullied his way to the basket a few times, helping the Lakers to shave San Antonio's lead from 12 to 5 before a Pop timeout. A Davis putback made it a three-point game, and an open jumper cut it to one, then Davis put the Lakers in front 102-101.
The Spurs' lull ended with a three by Vassell. Russell Westbrook knocked down a three, but then fouled Jakob Poeltl on a dunk. He missed the free throw for the tie.
Dejounte Murray missed two free throws to the delight of the Lakers fans in attendance, but Derrick White saved the rebound. Westbrook picked up his fifth foul and sent Devin Vassell to the line. He made it five straight Spurs misses.
Perhaps taking out a bit of his team's frustration, Poeltl cranked a tomahawk dunk over AD and Brodie in pick and roll to get to 20 points and put the Spurs in front 108-107 with four minutes left.
Dejounte Murray blocked a three, then found Poeltl again for another interior finish to extend the lead to three.
Davis got away with an elbow down low for a basket, but Murray answered from mid-range.
Melo drove in for a score, and the Spurs stole extra possessions but couldn't convert. Malik Monk drilled an open three to put the Lakers in front.
Poeltl got to the line for two shots, and he missed both but got the board.
Keita Bates-Diop scored to tie it up, and Anthony Davis went down grabbing his knee. He stayed down for a minute before walking it off.
Davis tried a lob on the other end, but Bates-Diop broke it up. Murray missed a mid-range shot for the win and the putback didn't go, so the Spurs and Lakers went to OT tied at 114.
Overtime
Westbrook opened the scoring with a tough bucket inside, and after White missed a stepback three Malik Monk got to the line and converted one of two. Dejounte Murray went for a three to tie but missed, and Davis scrapped for a putback to put the Lakers up 5.
Poeltl grabbed an offensive board, then hit his first free throw but missed the second.
Westbrook drove in for a ferocious dunk, and Poeltl answered with a dunk of his own.
LA turned it over, and KBD hit from the corner with his foot on the line to make it a two-point deficit.
Westbrook missed a pull-up jumper, and Devin found Poeltl on the roll to tie the game at 121.
Davis put back a miss to put LA back in front, and after a stop Westbrook finished in close.
AD seemed to block Dejounte, and that was the ballgame.
San Antonio fell 125-121.
Spurs lose to visiting Lakers in OT after squandering double-digit lead
Pregame
The San Antonio Spurs (1-2) will host the Los Angeles Lakers (1-2) tonight as the team will look to snap a two-game losing streak.
In their previous game versus Milwaukee, Khris Middleton scored 28 points, Giannis Antetokounmpo added 21 and the Milwaukee Bucks held on to beat the San Antonio Spurs 121-111 on Saturday night.
Doug McDermott scored 25 points and Keldon Johnson added 20 for San Antonio.
Before the game, Gregg Popovich spoke to the media about the example LeBron James has set, especially given the pressure and spotlight on him since he was a teenager. James will be out for this game with a minor leg injury.
Here are five things to watch for in tonight's Western Conference showdown:
1. Over the last 10 regular season meetings, the Lakers are 6-4 versus the Spurs.
2. Sharing the ball. The Spurs are third in the NBA in assists per game at 28.3.
3. Creating opportunities. The Spurs are tied for 7th in the NBA in deflections at 16.0 per game.
4. Take advantage of mistakes. The Lakers average 17.0 turnovers per game.
5. Making the most of the opposition's mistakes. The Spurs average 21.7 points off turnovers good for 5th in the NBA.
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