Doncic takes over early
Toronto jumped to a 5-0 lead on Sunday night. It lasted about two minutes. The Lakers answered with a 23-6 run and never really lost control of a 131-125 win, with Luka Doncic finishing on 45 points, 15 rebounds and 8-of-12 shooting from three, matching his season high for made threes.
Los Angeles led 36-23 after one quarter and 66-54 at the break. By the end of the third it was 104-82, and the cushion peaked at 26. The Lakers shot 53.8 percent from the floor and 48.6 percent from deep.
Austin Reaves added 19 points. Walker Kessler gave them 16 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks, and Collin Sexton chipped in 14.
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Toronto makes it uncomfortable
The Raptors did not go quietly. A 9-0 burst cut the margin to 109-100 with just under seven minutes left, and Jaden Bradley’s three-point play made it 125-120 with 43.7 seconds to play. Los Angeles had already pushed the lead to 118-101 at the 4:07 mark, which gave them enough room to close it out despite 24 turnovers.
Scottie Barnes led Toronto with 29 points. RJ Barrett had 22 points and 10 rebounds, and Jamison Battle scored 20. The Raptors shot 42.9 percent and hit only 31.5 percent of their threes.
What it means
The Lakers move to 3-1 at home. They had blown a 25-point lead in a road loss at Golden State on Friday, so holding a big lead this time mattered. Toronto is 1-3 since Kawhi Leonard’s knee injury, and this was the first stop of a four-game road trip.
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