Lakers guard Luka Doncic shoots in front of Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam, left, during the first half on Wednesday night, March 26, 2025, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Lakers forward Dorian Finney-Smith (17) blocks the shot of Indiana Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin (00) during the fir st half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle reacts to being called for a technical foul as his team plays the Lakers during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Lakers center Jaxson Hayes (11) dunks in front of Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard (2) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Lakers guard Austin Reaves (15) goes around Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard (2) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Lakers center Jaxson Hayes (11) dunks in front of Indiana Pacers center Myles Turner (33) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Indiana Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin (00) shoots over Lakers forward LeBron James (23) during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Indiana Pacers forward Obi Toppin (1) shoots in front of Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt (2) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Lakers star LeBron James handles the ball as Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam defends during the second half on Wednesday night in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard (2) shoots in front of Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Indiana Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin (00) gets stripped of the ball by Lakers guard Gabe Vincent (7) during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Indiana Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin (00) passes the ball around Lakers guard Austin Reaves (15) during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Lakers forward LeBron James, right, pulls in a rebound in front of Indiana Pacers guard Bennedict Mathurin (00) during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam (43) shoots in front of Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Lakers head coach J.J. Redick questions a call as his team plays the Indiana Pacers during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard (2) shoots over the defense of Lakers forward Rui Hachimura (28) during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Lakers forward LeBron James (23) reacts after hitting the game winning shot against the Indiana Pacers at the end of an NBA basketball game in Indianapolis, Wednesday, March 26, 2025. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) The Lakers celebrate with teammate LeBron James, second from right, after his game-winning tip-in as time expired lifted them to a 120-119 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday night in Indianapolis. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) Show Caption1 of 18Lakers guard Luka Doncic shoots in front of Indiana Pacers forward Pascal Siakam, left, during the first half on Wednesday night, March 26, 2025, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/AJ Mast) Expand INDIANAPOLIS — After an usual three quarters on Wednesday against the Indiana Pacers for reasons the Lakers and LeBron James likely wouldn’t want, attention shifted toward whether James’ double-digit scoring streak would continue. The streak stayed alive, reaching a record-extending 1,283 games, and the 40-year-old James made the biggest shot of the game, tipping in a putback of a Luka Doncic miss as time expired to secure a 120-119 victory over the Pacers that ended the Lakers’ three-game losing streak. “Just whatever it takes to help your teammates win,” James said. “For me, I can always do other things that still impact the game when I’m not scoring. That’s the beauty of my game.” James finished with 13 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists, with all four of the field goals he made coming in the fourth quarter, including the dramatic final basket, which was the eighth game-winning bucket of his career, tying late Lakers icon Kobe Bryant and Joe Johnson for the second-most in league history (playoffs included). Michael Jordan has the most with nine. “It’s just a really good player making a really good play,” Lakers guard Austin Reaves said. “He made pretty much a scrappy play to get to where he was at and make a winning play.” Doncic had 34 points, seven rebounds and seven assists, and Reaves had 24 points, five assists and four rebounds as the Lakers (44-28) won for just the fourth time in their past 11 games and moved into a tie with Memphis for fourth place in the Western Conference. The Lakers next face the Chicago Bulls on Thursday, which will be the second night of a back-to-back set and the third game of a four-game trip that ends Saturday in Memphis. For the first time in his 22-season NBA career, with Wednesday being his 1,553rd regular-season game, James didn’t make a field goal in the first three quarters, having just three points off of free throws and going 0 for 6 from the field entering the final period with the Lakers leading 95-92. “Certainly there was a level of frustration from starting whatever it was, 0-for-6,” Coach JJ Redick said. “We missed him early on some early offense seals against smaller players. And sometimes when you’re not in the offensive flow, just getting the ball at the rim, scoring a layup, getting to the free-throw line that can really get you going. So we missed out on some opportunities to get him going earlier. But never have questioned that guy’s commitment to winning.” James helped provide the Lakers with a cushion early in the fourth, scoring eight of the team’s first 10 points in the quarter on a pair of layups, two free throws and an 18-footer for a 105-92 lead. “It’s a little weird too,” James said. “The main thing is the main thing, and that’s just trying to win a basketball game. You don’t really know if you are in a rhythm or if you are out of rhythm with six shot attempts. It’s just about still what can I do to still affect the game. If the ball is gonna come to me offensively, then I gotta try to make some plays. And it did earlier in that fourth quarter, I was able to make some plays and help build us a lead.” Bennedict Mathurin (team-high 23 points off the bench) led the Pacers on a 11-0 run that cut the Lakers’ lead to two with less than eight minutes left, and neither team led by more than six the rest of the way. The Lakers took a 118-112 lead after a pair of 3-pointers from Rui Hachimura, who finished with 14 points in his first start since returning from a left knee injury that sidelined him for 12 games from Feb. 28 to March 22. “From the start, I was trying to be more aggressive,” Hachimura said. “My rhythm kind of got back for a little bit, so it was good.” The Lakers sputtered late behind turnovers and defensive mistakes, allowing the Pacers to score seven straight points to take a late 119-118 lead after Tyrese Haliburton (16 points and a season-high 18 assists) made an and-1 layup with 42.2 seconds left. “Obviously we know we gotta be better, especially in those last two minutes,” James said. “We feel like we have some momentum after those two big-time 3s by Rui, and we gotta do a better job of defending, not letting them score so fast in the shot clock. “But the game is never over until it says zeroes on the clock, literally [on Wednesday].” After a Mathurin 3-point miss, James made the hustle play the team needed to end the Lakers’ drought. Indiana had streaks of five straight wins overall and eight straight at home snapped. “I couldn’t really have too much emotion ’cause I was trying to see if I got the ball off in time, to be honest,” he said. “It’s always tricky when that, you touch the ball, you see the red light around the backboard and you don’t quite know if you got it off in time. I thought I had it on time, but you never know, sometimes. It’s always that split-second, seeing if the tip of your fingers are on the ball or not. “But after they showed the replay on it, it was definitely gratifying to know, especially the way we’ve been playing and to come in to know how they’ve been playing, and to come in here and get a good win in a very hostile environment, that’s big-time for our ballclub.” Related Articles Lakers’ LeBron James addresses confrontation with ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith Lakers seek to recapture defensive identity amid skid Luka Doncic takes responsibility for Lakers’ communication drop-off in loss to Magic Lakers fall to Magic, beginning trip with 3rd straight loss Lakers looking to get ‘reconnected’ as playoff push tightens ...read more read less