"LeBron James and Rui Hachimura made two consecutive 3s towards the end of the third quarter. Then, Deandre Ayton scored off James' bullet entry pass and another Hachimura triple put the Lakers up by eight points. They shot 5-10 from downtown in the quarter, but a glimmer of hope remained. The Raptors had momentum earlier in the frame, as Brandon Ingram scored or assisted on a 7-0 run and the Raptors trailed by one. Jack Armstrong referred to the third quarter still being a "seesaw battle.""
"More notably, the Raptors kept struggling to break the zone and scored a measly 13 points in the fourth. They shot under 30% from the field and an atrocious 1-9 from downtown in the final frame. The Raptors seemed deflated as Ingram's magic was stolen by Doncic - the latter's pressure defence forced Toronto's clutch man into a travel. Then, Ayton scored."
LeBron James and Rui Hachimura sparked a decisive third-quarter run with consecutive threes, and Deandre Ayton converted off James' entry pass to extend the lead. The Lakers shot 5-of-10 from three in the third and pulled away late. The Raptors showed earlier fight, cutting a seven-point first-quarter deficit to one at halftime through a Brandon Ingram-led 7-0 burst and strong interior defense. Collin Murray-Boyles exited with a left-thumb sprain aggravated by Luka Doncic, and Sandro Mamukelashvili missed much of the fourth. Toronto managed just 13 fourth-quarter points, shot under 30% and went 1-for-9 from three, allowing the lead to swell to 19.
Read at Raptors Republic
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