Lakers hit highest score in 37 years in narrow win

Anthony Davis and LeBron James starred as the Los Angeles Lakers put in their highest-scoring performance in 37 years to hold off the Indiana Pacers.

The Lakers won 150-145 with 36 points and 16 rebounds from Davis, while James added 26 points and 10 assists.

Indiana scored 46 points in the final quarter but the Lakers hit 10 in the last minute for a third successive win.

“We allowed them to score 145 so it was terrible defensively but we can do what we want offensively,” said Davis.

“But we’ve got to defend, especially when we’ve got a team [in trouble] like that. We don’t need to give them life, but at this point in the season, a win is a win.”

The Lakers, who start a run of six away games on Tuesday, are ninth in the Western Conference and have 11 matches remaining in the 82-game regular season. The top eight qualify for the end-of-season play-offs.

The Pacers are sixth in the Eastern Conference and have 10 games to play.

Elsewhere, Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 30 points and grabbed a season-high 19 rebounds as the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 118-93 to consolidate second position in the Eastern Conference.

The defeat leaves the Thunder fractionally behind reigning NBA champions the Denver Nuggets in the battle to win the Western Conference.

The Minnesota Timberwolves are also in the running, with just one win separating the top three after they edged past the Golden State Warriors 114-110. Steph Curry contributed 31 points for the Warriors.

The Los Angeles Clippers remain fourth despite a 121-107 defeat by the Philadelphia 76ers.

The New Orleans Pelicans, who are one place behind the Clippers, heaped more misery on the Detroit Pistons with a 114-101 victory over the NBA’s worst side. The Pistons have now lost 59 of their 71 games.

And the Miami Heat kept up their play-off push in the Eastern Conference with a 121-84 win over the higher-ranked Cleveland Cavaliers.