Without LeBron James available and facing a double-digit deficit halfway through the fourth quarter, Austin Reaves and the Los Angeles Lakers had to make a decision. It was one of those times when you could turn the page to the next day and prepare for the match, or you could compete to the fullest and give yourself a chance—or at least attempt to—to get back into the game, according to Reaves.

With 38.6 seconds remaining in the second overtime, Reaves scored a game-winning 3-pointer and recorded his second career triple-double. The Lakers overcame James’ absence to defeat the Milwaukee Bucks 128-124 on Tuesday night.

Despite falling down by 19 points in the fourth quarter and never taking the lead in regulation, Reaves finished with 29 points, 14 rebounds, and 10 assists in 47 minutes as the Lakers won their fourth straight game to start a six-game trip. Despite having a knee ιnjury late in the game, Anthony Davis played 52 minutes and finished with 34 points and 23 rebounds.

“A 20-point lead is nothing in this league right now because of how powerful the offense is right now; you can wipe out a lead pretty quickly,” Davis remarked.

There won’t be much time for the Lakers to enjoy their incredible return. They return to Memphis on Wednesday.

For his tenth triple-double of the year, Giannis Antetokounmpo of Milwaukee finished with 29 points, a season-high 21 rebounds, and 11 assists. Although he only made 9 of 29, Damian Lillard scored 27. Malik Beasley put in 21 more.

James was unavailable for the Lakers’ opening six-game trip due to a problem with his left ankle. James had also missed the Lakers’ March 8 123-122 victory over the Bucks.

Antetokounmpo declared, “We have to watch this game and learn from this game.” “Observe the reason why we failed to obtain a halt. Examine the reason behind the ball’s stagnation at the end. See why the game went against us. See why there were so many 50/50 balls and we couldn’t retrieve them.

For the Lakers, D’Angelo Russell finished with 29 points, 12 assists, and 7 rebounds. 14 rebounds and 16 points were provided by Rui Hachimura.

The fact that neither team scored in the opening three minutes of the second overtime indicated how worn out they were. After trailing by two points in the second overtime period, Reaves’ last-second 3-pointer gave the Lakers a decisive lead.

With 24.2 seconds remaining, Antetokounmpo missed two free throws. Russell then scored two free throws with 14.7 seconds left to put the game at 126-121. Beasley then made a 3-pointer to cut the margin to two, but Davis sealed the victory with two free throws with 1.7 seconds left.

Before Spencer Dinwiddie’s game-winning 3-pointer with 2:19 remaining in the first overtime, the Lakers had never led.

With 13.6 seconds remaining in the first overtime, Russell drew a foul and made both free throws to tie the game with 3.1 seconds left, but Lillard’s corner 3-pointer had put Milwaukee ahead.

Lillard attempted a driving layup, but Davis blocked it, forcing a second OT.

For much of the evening, Milwaukee appeared to be in complete control.

The Bucks had their highest lead of the game, 94-75, after a Lillard jumper with 8:25 remaining. However, the Lakers outscored the Bucks 26-7 throughout the remainder of the fourth quarter to force overtime.

With the amount of shooting in this league, like they did tonight, “there are times when the ball just bounces differently, and if you don’t stay disciplined and do the things that go into how we built that lead, those leads can go away quick,” said Lillard. “That’s what took place.”

With 43.9 seconds left, Taurean Prince drew a foul and converted both of his free throws to knot the score. At the end of the fourth quarter, both teams had a chance to win it, but they were unable to convert.