Despite being very shorthanded, the Los Angeles Lakers came out with very good energy, and they actually got off to a very good start for once.
After the Toronto Raptors responded and took an early lead, the Lakers had a response of their own and kept the game very close the whole way.
L.A. has done a very poor job of winning close ballgames this season, but tonight it actually did well in that department.
The Lakers were still anemic defensively, allowing Toronto to shoot 50.5 percent from the field and score 27 fast break points.
But they made many more big plays in crunch time than the Raptors did, which is why they came out on top in overtime, 128-123.
The Raptors aren’t a bad team either – the Lakers defeated a squad that has been playing well lately and had won 16 of their last 23 games coming into Friday.