early/late in the game

idiom

: at an early/late time in a game or sport

She scored a goal early in the game.

—often used figuratively

It's too late in the game to change the date of the meeting.

She got into the computer industry early in the game.

Examples of early/late in the game in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

What is your view?A: The mythology around that March 2, 1962, performance tends to focus on the raw scoring total, the lack of TV footage or the fact that Wilt’s teammates intentionally fed him the ball late in the game. —Chris Reed, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 July 2025

Cunningham, who is Clark’s teammate on the Fever, took down Connecticut’s Jacy Sheldon late in the game, and video of the moment went viral on social media. —Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 1 July 2025

Despite racing into a 13-point lead early in the game, the Lynx began to struggle against the tough Fever defense. —Ben Church, CNN Money, 2 July 2025

Thus Haliburton, who returned shortly after getting injured early in the game, outscored Furphy four points to two for the Pacers, who, down 3-2, will face an elimination game in Game 6 set for Thursday night in Indianapolis. —Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 17 June 2025