"That one hurt; That one hurt for us" - Dennis Schroder rues loss to Knicks as LA Lakers miss massive opportunity

Dennis Schroeder lamented the LA Lakers' 112-108 loss to the New York Knicks on Sunday (March 12) night in a crucial matchup. As a result, the Lakers were knocked back out of the play-in picture and dropped down to 11th seed with a 33-35 record.

Despite a masterful scoring performance from D'Angelo Russell, who had 33 points, and a monstrous defensive outing for Anthony Davis, who put up 17 points and 16 rebounds, the Lakers still found themselves at the losing end. Dennis Schroder's reaction said it all as the German point guard was heartbroken taking the loss on Sunday night.

"That one hurt," Schroder said. "That one hurt for us."

LA Lakers out of the play-in tournament picture again

Riding a three-game win streak and climbing all the way to ninth seed, the LA Lakers slumped to a loss against the Knicks. They're now down in 11th place in the West and have only 14 games left to claw themselves back into playoff reckoning.

On the bright side, not all hope is lost for the LA Lakers. The ninth-seeded Utah Jazz and tenth-seeded OKC Thunder also have the same 33-35 record as the Lakers. That means if LA wins on Tuesday (March 14) night over the New Orleans Pelicans, and the Jazz and Thunder lose, they will return to ninth.

Despite playing without LeBron James, Davis and D'Angelo Russell have held down the fort. Davis played two monstrous games during their three-game win streak. "The Brow" added 39 points against the Golden State Warriors, and 30 points and 22 rebounds against the Memphis Grizzlies.

Russell may have made it late to the party but was a huge factor in their third consecutive win, which came against the Toronto Raptors. "D-Lo" flirted with a double-double on his return from his ankle injury, putting up 29 points and nine assists.

If Davis and Co. retain their new-found consistency the play-in tournament will still be a possibility for the Lakers.