Lou Williams is the Lakers closer and on Tuesday night he tried to do his part.
Williams hit a three-pointer with one minute and 45 seconds left in the game to tie the Kings for the first time in the fourth quarter. A little more than a minute later, he did it again, tying the game at 96 with less than 30 seconds to go.
Then, with nine seconds left in the game, Williams got the ball after a missed free throw by Kings forward DeMarcus Cousins, and elevated for a shot at the buzzer. That one, though, didn’t fall.
The Lakers lost to Sacramento, 97-96, falling to 19-38 while the Kings improved to 24-32.
Cousins finished the game with 40 points, including 16 in the fourth quarter including the final go-ahead free throw. Williams finished with 19 fourth-quarter points as he tried to lift the Lakers to their second win of the season against the Kings.
The Kings now lead the season series, 2-1 with one more game remaining at Staples Center.
Williams was the only Lakers player to eclipse 20 points. Julius Randle and Nick Young joined him in double-digit scoring. Young had 10 points on three-of-10 shooting while Randle scored 11 points, making five of 11 shots.
Center Timofey Mozgov played his first minutes since being taken out of the starting lineup last week. He played 11 minutes, scored four points and grabbed three rebounds.
When: 6 PST.
Where: Talking Stick Resort Arena.
On the air: TV: Spectrum SportsNet, Spectrum Deportes; Radio: 710, 1330.
Records: Lakers 19-38, Suns 17-39.
Record vs. Suns: 1-1.
Update: The Suns are one of only two NBA teams — Brooklyn is the other — with a worse record than the Lakers, who will be playing the second game of a back to back after Tuesday night’s game against Sacramento in Staples Center. The Suns, who have lost 10 of their last 12 games, are led by high-scoring guards Eric Bledsoe (21.5 points a game) and Devin Booker (21.1). The two combined for 58 points in Phoenix’s 110-108 loss to New Orleans on Monday.
–Mike DiGiovanna
tania.ganguli@latimes.com
Follow Tania Ganguli on Twitter @taniaganguli
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