Toronto's Vince Carter led his team to 17-2 run in the fourth quarter and a brilliant comeback to force overtime against the Los Angeles Lakers, but it wasn't enough as Kobe Bryant nailed down 40 points as the NBA's defending champions walked away with a close 104-101 victory against the Raptors at the Air Canada Centre.
Bryant, who led the NBA in scoring with 28.8 points per game average before Sunday's game, proved to be the difference and got the better of his rival on this night, with perfect shooting from the foul line and hitting some shots with remarkable ease despite some tough defence by the Raptors.
"They're starting to respect my jump shot," said Bryant of the teams he's faced recently.
Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant drives to the basket against the Toronto Raptors during second-half action in Toronto. (CP/Aaron Harris)
"We were moving the ball well. Today shows progress, signs of improvement. Now we have to sustain it."
Actually, thanks to Bryant and some poor shooting by Toronto, it looked like the Lakers were on their way to another easy victory over a Canadian team - they beat the Vancouver Grizzlies 98-76 on Saturday night - as they started the fourth quarter with a 76-64 lead.
Carter looked virtually lost in the third quarter, managing just two points as he tried in vain to get control of the ball and fire off shots against Los Angeles' double-teaming.
But something changed in the fourth quarter. After a lacklustre third, Toronto finally found its rhythm with five minutes left in the game, rattling in shots and opening up its game a little more.
"We don't fold up," said Raptor coach Lenny Wilkens. "A lot of teams would have folded if they were down that many."
One of the reasons why Toronto elevated its game was the strong defence and offence supplied by the Raptors fearsome duo of Antonio Davis and Charles Oakley.
Even with the league's leading rebounder on the court in Shaquille O'Neal, both Davis and Oakley managed to each put up a double-double, combining to haul in 34 rebounds and score 26 points.
Using that depth, the Raptors whittled the Lakers lead to just two points with 10 seconds left remaining in the game.
Wilkens constructed a play that put the ball in the hands of Carter, who drove down the right side of the lane, but was fouled with four seconds left in the game.
But Carter - who led all Toronto scorers with 31 points - sunk the two free throws to tie the game.
With four seconds being an eternity in basketball, the Lakers had one last chance to win the game before going to overtime. The Lakers marched the ball up the court and Bryant tried to take the last shot, but it was partially blocked by Carter and time ran out on the clock.
In overtime, with the Raptors defence concentrating on Bryant and O'Neill, another veteran presence stepped in and helped the Lakers escape with the win.
Robert Horry, the six-foot-10 forward in his ninth season in the NBA, scored all six of his points in the extra quarter to give the Lakers a much-needed lift in front of an energetic Air Canada Centre crowd.
"That's what (Horry) does, sneaks up and bites you," said Raptor point guard Mark Jackson. "Makes big shots, made two key drives, hit two foul shots. He's been doing it a long time."
After Horry sank two free throws with 33 seconds left in the game to give the Lakers a 101-97 lead, Bryant scored his final two points of the game on another two baskets from the free-throw line.
But Oakley gave his team some hope with 4.8 seconds left when he sunk a long jumper to draw the Raps within two points.
Brian Shaw gave the opening the Raps needed when he missed the first of two free throws, but Carter couldn't sink an off-balance, three-point shot from well beyond the arc.
