Bosh, Raptors top Lakers

Feb 10, 2007, 3:15 GMT

Toronto, ON - Chris Bosh scored 29 points and pulled down 11 rebounds, and the Toronto Raptors escaped with a 96-92 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers at Air Canada Center.

Anthony Parker had 18 points to go along with seven rebounds for the Raptors, who have won five straight games and 10 of their last 12 overall while snapping a three-game skid against Los Angeles. Andrea Bargnani chipped in with 14 points off the bench, while Morris Peterson donated 10 points for Toronto.

Kobe Bryant had a team-high 25 points and added nine rebounds for the Lakers, who fell to 3-4 on their eight-game road trip. Maurice Evans finished with 19 points, Smush Parker had 18, and Lamar Odom recorded his 12th double-double of the season, finishing with 17 points and 12 rebounds.

Holding a seven-point lead, Toronto continued to push the ball down the floor, using a mini-spurt to build a 79-67 margin with 8:38 left in the game.

Los Angeles continued to plug away, however, using a 11-0 run to tie things up, 86-86, on Evans' three-point shot at 3:27.

The lead went back and forth over the next two minutes, as Bryant's finger roll was followed by a steal and a driving dunk to put Los Angeles back on top, 92-90, before Peterson's trey put the Raptors up by a point with 1:49 remaining.

After a short timeout, Bosh was fouled on the inbound pass and made one of two from the charity stripe to give the Raptors a 94-92 edge, while Anthony Parker managed to snag the rebound, and draw a foul. He made one-of-two, putting Toronto ahead 95-92.

The Lakers had one last chance to tie, but Bryant's three-point attempt bounced off the back of the rim with one second left, with Bosh pulling down the rebound and drawing the foul. His subsequent free throw then iced the game for Toronto.

The Raptors finished 36-of-74 (49 percent) from the floor, while Los Angeles made 35-of-81 (43 percent) of its shots.

'You know, we just didn't play well,' said Bryant. 'We didn't play with the kind of enthusiasm, the kind of passion we needed for this kind of game. They jumped on us for three quarters and we managed to make a game out of it somehow in the fourth but they hit timely shots.

The Lakers raced out to a 17-16 lead after the opening 12 minutes.

Toronto tried to turn the corner with a 7-3 spurt to open the second quarter, starting with Jorge Garbajosa's trey and Jose Calderon's reverse layup. Joey Graham then followed with a shot from the charity stripe as the Raptors took a 24-17 lead at 10:13.

Los Angeles followed with an 8-0 surge, capped by a pair of Bryant free throws to go up 25-24 with 7:25 remaining in the half.

The Raptors battled back, however, and held a 43-40 lead at intermission. The Lakers were just 2-of-12 from behind the arc in the first half.

Toronto tried to pull away in the third quarter, building an eight-point lead, 50-42, on Anthony Parker's trey at 8:56.

The Lakers recovered nicely, as Bryant's fade away jumper got them within a point at 3:54, but the squad still trailed 72-65 heading into the final frame.

'That's what fun basketball is all about when you have two good players,' said Bosh, of trading baskets with Bryant. 'You just have to put all the team's confidence in yourself and take a lot of good shots. He (Bryant) made a lot of good defensive plays and turned them into points. I just took advantage of the open shots that I had.'

Game Notes

The last time the Raptors were four games above .500 was December 12, 2003.

Toronto is 5-17 against the Lakers all-time.

The Raptors have won seven in a row at Air Canada Center, the squad's longest winning streak at home since March 24-April 17 of the 2001-02 season.

Los Angeles had a slight edge on the boards, 42-40.

© 2007 The Sports Network