Los Angeles Lakers Snap 11-Game Road Losing Streak After Win Against Toronto Raptors in Overtime Thriller

A late 3-pointer by Avery Bradley gave the Los Angeles Lakers a lead on Friday night, finishing off one of the season's most improbable victories in Toronto, 128-123.

Clutch performances from LeBron James and Russell Westbrook in the waning minutes of regulation were the only reason the Lakers made it to overtime as the duo carried the team to their first road win since January 25 in Brooklyn, SB Nation reported.

In an Instagram post an hour after their win over Toronto Raptors, James posted a picture of a celebrating Russell Westbrook with a caption: "MOOD!!! Hi Haters."

Westbrook was the one that sent the match into overtime after draining a three-pointer. James led all scorers with 36 points on 15-26 shooting from the field and 2-7 shooting from beyond the arc, to go along with nine points and seven rebounds.

Westbrook finished with 22 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists, including setting up Bradley on the game-winning 3-pointer.

Los Angeles Lakers' Russell Westbrook Ties Game Against Toronto Raptors With 0.4 Seconds Left

The two teams traded haymakers in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter, with LeBron James matching each punch thrown by the Toronto Raptors, including a pair of monstrous 3-pointers.

Toronto's barrage of big baskets, capped by a 3-pointer from Gary Trent Jr. to put the hosts up 116-113 with 26.1 seconds left, appeared too much for the Lakers to handle.

But a late turnover by the Raptors gave way to tie the game with 0.4 seconds left as Russell Westbrook hit a pull-up 3-pointer, forcing an extra session, CBS Sports reported.

The Lakers were competitive from start to finish for the first time since the All-Star break, and it did not take a 50-point performance from James.

After a relatively quiet opening three periods, it was James who buried a pair of 3-pointers in the closing minutes, with one banked in a while falling out-of-bounds and the other from well beyond the 3-point line, to match Raptors' shot for shot down the stretch.

A variety of players helped the Los Angeles Lakers get to the fourth quarter on level pegging. Wenyen Gabriel finished with 17 points and had the game-sealing block in the final seconds of overtime.

Malik Monk, Austin Reaves, DJ Augustin, and Avery Bradley all contributed to the perimeter combining for 10 3-pointers.

Inclusion of 5-Star Prospect Wenyen Gabriel to Los Angeles Lakers

Since the All-Star break, the Los Angeles Lakers have come out of the gate seeming uninterested in playing basketball, putting up double-digit first-half deficits before stumbling to a loss.

They flew out of the gates on Friday, boosted by an unlikely source. Gabriel's inclusion in the starting lineup marked the second start of his career - ironically, the first came his rookie season against the Lakers - and he made the most of it, hitting a 3-pointer to open the game, scoring 10 points in the first three minutes and 14 in the first quarter.

The downside was that foul trouble limited him to just eight minutes in the first half, but his early start from beyond the arc set the tone for the rest of the game.

After coming into the night 1-33 from the 3-point line in their last five first quarters, the Los Angeles Lakers shot 5-10 from range in the opening frame against Toronto Raptors.

Even when the Raptors stormed back in the first half after the Lakers built double-digit leads, the Los Angeles did not give up, as they had done so many times this season. Instead, they eventually responded to a Toronto run to seize the lead with one of their own.

In another rematch with a recent foe, the Los Angeles Lakers will travel to Washington to play against the Wizards on March 19.

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Written by: Jess Smith

WATCH: LAKERS at RAPTORS | FULL GAME HIGHLIGHTS | March 18, 2022 - From NBA