Mar 30, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Jordan Clarkson (6) hits the game winning shot against the Philadelphia 76ers in overtime at Wells Fargo Center. The Lakers won 113-111 in overtime. Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
PHILADELPHIA — Jordan Clarkson dropped in a layup with seven-10ths of a second left in overtime Monday night as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Philadelphia 76ers 113-111, in a game featuring two of the NBA’s worst teams.
Clarkson, a guard who led all scorers with 26 points, took a pass from guard Wayne Ellington and dropped in his game-winner.
Philadelphia forward Nerlens Noel, who finished with 19 points and 14 rebounds, had tied it on a hook shot with 12 seconds to play.
Reserve guard Jabari Brown scored 22 points and Ellington had 20 for Los Angeles, which has the league’s fourth-worst record at 20-53. The Sixers, who saw reserve guard Isaiah Canaan score 18 points and guard Ish Smith add 17, fell to 18-57, the league’s third-worst mark.
Los Angeles forced overtime when Clarkson made two free throws to tie the score at 102 with 11.1 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Smith then missed a drive that would have won it for Philadelphia.
Ellington notched seven points in the first 3:19 of the extra period as the Lakers seized a 111-105 lead. The Sixers scored the next six points, all by Noel, to tie it once more.
The Sixers burst out to an early 24-11 lead, as guard JaKarr Sampson hit a pair of 3-pointers and forward Robert Covington also connected from the arc. In the early going, Noel dived on the floor for a loose ball and while seated fed center Furkan Aldemir for a dunk.
After Philadelphia led 32-19 in the second quarter, the Lakers went on a 17-4 run that included a 3-pointer and a three-point play by Brown. That left the game tied at 36-36.
Los Angeles went ahead for the first time all night, 47-46, on a jumper by forward Wesley Johnson. The teams exchanged the lead four more times after that, with Johnson’s dunk with 1:11 remaining in the second quarter giving the Lakers a 51-50 halftime lead.
The Lakers made it 62-55 on Clarkson’s two free throws five minutes into the third quarter, and by the end of period held a 76-71 advantage.
The Sixers trailed 81-76 early in the fourth quarter, but reserve forward Thomas Robinson packed seven of his 13 points into a 16-3 flurry that gave Philadelphia 92-84 lead with 5:18 left.
The Lakers clawed back, tying it at 98-all on Clarkson’s drive with 49.9 seconds left. Clarkson also countered a basket by Smith with two free throws, and he answered two foul shots by Noel with the two that came with 11.1 seconds to play.
NOTES: Lakers F Carlos Boozer sat out due to an upper-respiratory infection, while Los Angeles G Jeremy Lin sat out a second consecutive game with that ailment. … The Sixers were without G Jason Richardson (left knee injury), F Jerami Grant (upper respiratory infection) and F Luc Mbah a Moute (shoulder soreness). Coach Brett Brown said Richardson, who missed two years with injuries to his left knee and right foot before returning last month, might miss as many as two more games. … Monday’s game marked the second straight that Philadelphia F/C Nerlens Noel started at power forward. Brown said he made the move with the idea that Noel will have to play that position next year, when C Joel Embiid returns after missing this season following foot surgery. “Out of 48 minutes, there’s enough minutes where we can see him play (center),” Brown said of Noel, “but I think his blocked shots will take a hit as I move him more toward a perimeter defensive (role).”
