On a night where the Sweet 16 captured the basketball universe, the Los Angeles Lakers and Chicago Bulls may have outdone even the wildest March Madness finish you could ever imagine. The Bulls won, 119-117, but it would be impossible to guess how they got there.
At least four shots appeared to be game-winners, only to be upstaged by the next hero. It’s worth breaking down the game’s final 30 seconds, which were absolutely bonkers.
0:27 – Austin Reaves comes up clutch
Let’s start with 27 seconds left and the Lakers up by a single point, 111-110. Austin Reaves found himself isolated on Nikola Vucevic (a familiar target for the Lakers throughout the game), and he drove, stopped on a dime, and hit a tough fallaway floater to put the Lakers up by three points.
After Josh Giddey airballed a floater on the ensuing possession, Reaves was fouled and made both free throws, creating a seemingly insurmountable five-point lead (115-110) with 13 seconds to play.
But the Bulls weren’t having any of that.
0:10 – Bulls hit two 3s in six seconds
Chicago coach Billy Donovan drew up a nice inbounds play that wound up with Vučević throwing a quick pass to Patrick Williams, who knocked down a corner 3 with 10 seconds remaining. That’s when all hell broke loose.
On the ensuing inbound pass, LeBron James attempted to get the ball to Reaves, but it was intercepted by Giddey. He threw a quick dime to Coby White, who splashed a wing 3-pointer to give the Bulls an inexplicable two-point lead with six seconds left.
Game over, right? Not even close.
0:06 – Reaves’ layup spoiled by Giddey’s winning bomb
Reaves struck again on the Lakers’ next possession, making a driving layup to give him 30 points and what looked like the game-winner with 3.1 seconds to play.
Instead, Giddey quickly inbounded to Williams, who tossed it right back to Giddey. He took one dribble to halfcourt and let loose a heave which — of course — went right through the hoop.
Bulls win, 119-117. You could watch a million basketball games in your life and never see another ending like this.
Bulls quietly rising in Eastern Conference standings
It was the fourth straight win for the Bulls, who are firmly in the mix for the No. 7 seed in the East. Now 33-40, Chicago is two games behind the No. 7 seed Atlanta Hawks (35-38) and 1.5 games back of the No. 8 seed Orlando Magic (35-39).
Giddey was clearly the hero of the game, but not just for his final shot. He could have moped and hung his head after putting up that airball near the basket, but he bounced back to pick up the clutch steal and assist which turned the game on its head.
For the Lakers, who led by as many as 18 points in the fourth, it was another costly loss as they attempt to navigate the logjam in the middle of the Western Conference. The loss dropped the Lakers to 44-29, tied with the Memphis Grizzlies and 1.5 games behind the Denver Nuggets for the No. 3 seed.
Reaves’ 30 points led the team, while Luka Dončić added 25 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. James finished with 17 points and 12 assists on 8-for-20 shooting.
“Devastation,” Lakers coach JJ Redick said when asked for his immediate reaction after the wild finish. “It’s a hell of a way to lose a basketball game.”
