LeBron James jogged backwards down the near sideline, his lips pursed after another jumper rattled in and bounced out.
James and the Lakers were getting avalanched, but a run to undo a 17-point deficit got them within a point before the Memphis Grizzlies smothered them with a barrage of baskets.
Memphis beat the Lakers 116-99 on its home floor Wednesday night in Game 5, extending the series to a sixth game Friday night in Los Angeles.
Desmond Bane, the guy the Lakers couldn’t stop in Game 4, stayed hot. Ja Morant, the guy the Lakers couldn’t stop in Game 2, attacked the Lakers and told them they were “too small.”
And James, the player who saved the Lakers at the end of regulation and in overtime Monday, could not make a positive impression in his first chance to close out the Grizzlies in the first round of the NBA playoffs.
Bane scored 33 and Morant had 31 points for Memphis.
James made only five of 17 shots and just one of nine from three-point range. He turned the ball over five times.
The Lakers were within a point midway through the third when Anthony Davis went to the bench. Memphis quickly scored seven straight points to begin a 26-2 run that sealed the game.
Davis finished with 31 points and 19 rebounds, but the Lakers never got closer than 12 in the fourth. James had 15 points and 10 rebounds.
This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.