Simon went on fire for 41 points, while Gavagan had a tremendous outing for LA Lakers, and in the end it was Atlanta beating LA Lakers, 108-104 in overtime. Atlanta coach Bob was impressed after the game. "Gavagan was the story of the game. We came in feeling pretty good about our chances, and aside from him we were right. But for whatever reason he caused us all sorts of problems out there, and we had to battle just to get into overtime and then to get the win."

Gavagan was disappointed with the final outcome. "There's no such thing as a 'moral victory'. We played them close, probably better than most people predicted, but we lost. And a close loss is no better than a blowout on the final records."

Atlanta was led by Simon (41 points, 0 assists, a steal), Mcnair (15 points, 7 boards, 2 assists, a steal, 4 blocks), Perry (13 points, 7 boards, 0 assists, 3 blocks). LA Lakers was led by Gavagan (19 points, 12 boards, 1 assists, 2 blocks), Washington (6 points, 14 assists, 2 steals, a block), Sanchez (24 points, 5 boards, 0 assists, 2 blocks).

After this win, Atlanta stand at 6-10. They hold at #3 in the Southeast and hold at #10 overall in the Eastern Conference. LA Lakers stand at 3-11 and 1-6 at home. They stay at #5 in the Pacific and remain at #15 overall in the Western Conference.

box score Atlanta roster LA Lakers* roster