Anthony Davis leads rally from 27 down as Lakers beat Mavs 111-108

DALLAS (AP) —Anthony Davis dunked a missed shot and screamed after giving theLos Angeles Lakers the lead for good with two minutes to go.

So much forthe 27-point deficit in a showcase of stars that went from alaugher to a thriller with 13 fourth-quarter lead changes.

Davis had 30points and 15 rebounds, LeBron James scored 26 and the Lakerscompleted their biggest rally in 21 years, beating the same teamagain in a 111-108 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Sunday.

The fourthwin in five games for LA came after trailing by 27 in the middle ofthe second quarter — the same deficit the Lakers faced at the startof the fourth at home against Dallas on Dec. 6, 2002, beforefinishing a 30-point rally in a 105-103 victory.

“The guysnever got discouraged,” Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. “They hadthat look of frustration, but it wasn’t a look of defeatedness ontheir faces. Everybody just wanted to stay encouraged.”

Luka Doncicscored 26 points for the Mavs, but the youngest of the foursuperstars was limited and frustrated, largely by the defense ofJarred Vanderbilt, after a 14-point first quarter that sent Dallason its way to the huge lead.

Kyrie Irvinghad 21 points and 11 rebounds for Dallas, but didn’t take over inthe fourth quarter the way he did in his first victory with Doncicsince the trade from Brooklyn — over lowly San Antonio.

“We have togrow up if we want to win a championship,” Mavs coach Jason Kiddsaid. “What the Lakers just showed us is it’s not the rabbit thatwins; it’s the turtle. And they worked the game. And that’s what wehave to get better at.”

Davis andJames were the fourth-quarter standouts as trade acquisitionD’Angelo Russell sat out after spraining his ankle in a victoryover defending champion Golden State in the previous game.

The Lakershad what looked like an ankle scare with James as the rally wasgaining steam in the third quarter, with the recently crownedall-time scoring leader staying down for several minutes holdinghis lower right leg. He stayed in the game.

“It’s beenbetter,” said James, who limped through the tunnel after the game.“But I definitely wasn’t going to locker room and not finish thegame. The importance of this game and then the momentum that wehad, I felt like we could steal one after being down.”

After theinjury, James hit a tying 3-pointer to start the fourth, thenanother bucket for LA’s first lead since the middle of the firstquarter.

After Davis’rebound and dunk for a 104-103 lead with 2:00 remaining, Jamesscored for a three-point edge.

The Maverickswere still down three with 15 seconds left when an inbound passfrom Irving to Doncic was headed toward the backcourt. Doncic ranto save it from going into the backcourt, thinking it would be aturnover if he didn’t.

Davis grabbedthe loose ball, forcing Dallas to foul. Doncic could have let theball go past midcourt without Dallas losing possession.

Irving saidhe threw the ball toward the backcourt to give Doncic more room,and figured the soon-to-be 24-year-old would know he could let itcross midcourt.

“Once I sawhim try to save it from half court, I looked at him about a minutelater, ‘You know you could go backcourt?’” Irving said. “He’s like,‘Ah, man, that’s my fault.’ This is what it’s going to be like whenyou’re learning in-game with one another.”

Vanderbilt,another trade pickup for LA, had 15 points, 17 rebounds and foursteals, including two during a 12-0 third-quarter run that got thedeficit inside 10 for the first time since late in the first.

TIP-INS

Lakers: LAwon despite an 0-of-15 start from 3-point range, and was beingoutscored 30-0 from deep by the second quarter. The comeback wasmethodical, and inside-oriented, as the Lakers outscored theMavericks 62-32 in the paint. ... Dennis Schroder had 16 points anda game-high eight assists.

Mavericks:Dallas cooled off after a hot start from going 8 of 26 after thebreak. Doncic made his first 3 but missed four of the last five.Irving was 1 of 8 from deep after halftime. ... Tim Hardaway Jr.scored 17 points and helped fuel the early Dallas surge by blockinga shot from James, running down the loose ball and throwing a longpass to Doncic for a layup just before the first-quarterbuzzer.

UPNEXT

Lakers: AtMemphis on Tuesday.

Mavericks:Indiana visits Tuesday.