Thomas Garnett / G-Lens Creative

Mikel Brown Jr. on attempting the layup in the final seconds up one rather than pulling the ball out: “I did see the open lane, and I thought I had a layup, but the ball was kind of already slipping out of my hands, and PG was already coming towards my right side. So I felt like if I didn't go up with it, I kind of was gonna fall out of bounds. So that was my last resort, in all honesty, but I can't make an excuse. There's a lot of plays down the stretch that I messed up on, that I take full accountability for, and I'm gonna be better. Was it discussed before the play to dribble the ball out? “It was discussed to just try to get it in, and try to kill time. That definitely was discussed, but like I said, it's just mistakes down the stretch that I just can't make. I just can't do that."