Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbooks) - Pau Gasol led the way with 24 points as the
Los Angeles Lakers blitzed Toronto, 112-99, at Staples Center.
Kobe Bryant added 23 points, seven assists and five rebounds for the Lakers, who have won seven games in a row and have started the season 14-1, their best beginning since a 16-1 charge out of the gate in 2001-02.
"We expect to win every night," said Gasol, who also had nine rebounds. "We have great expectations. Fourteen-and-one doesn't surprise me with the team we have."
Andrew Bynum had 18 points and 10 boards, while Trevor Ariza came off the bench to score 14.
Anthony Parker led a balanced attack with 19 points for the Raptors, whose two-game win streak came to an end despite all starters scoring in double figures. Andrea Bargnani posted 14 points with a game-best 11 rebounds and Jose Calderon chipped in 12 points with a game-high 12 assists.
"I saw a lot of good things," said Raptors head coach Sam Mitchell. "We showed a level of toughness. I thought we boxed out. We just couldn't get any rebounds. We got some good looks, but didn't make them all."
Bynum's three-point play which included an emphatic dunk with 7:26 remaining in the game pushed the Lakers over the century mark at 101-86. His dunk a little more than a minute later gave LA a 19-point edge and the home team cruised from there.
"Our rebounding was big," Bynum noted. "They weren't very impressive inside with J.O. (Jermaine O'Neal) out and we were able to take advantage of it."
The Lakers led by as many as five early in the first quarter before a 10-4 run gave Toronto a one-point lead with 5 1/2 minutes to play on a Jason Kapono deuce. Gasol ended the period by scoring eight points as part of a 15-9 burst as LA led 34-29 after one.
A 15-3 run through the middle portion of the second quarter ending on two from the line by Gasol with 4:57 left put the Lakers up 51-38, their largest lead in the game to that point.
Seven in a row from Toronto, including a trey from Parker, shrunk its deficit to 55-51, but Los Angeles finished the half strongly, with six in a row ending on a Bryant slam for a 10-point edge.
Five more to begin the third boosted the lead to 15, and though the Raptors got within seven at 69-62, an alley-oop shot from Ariza completed a 15-7 run to put LA ahead 84-69 with 2:20 left in the quarter.
Bargnani's bucket with 29 ticks on the clock closed the Raptors' deficit to seven before two from the line by Gasol established a 90-81 lead heading to the fourth.
Game Notes
Bryant fell 15 short of 22,000 career points. He could have been the youngest player ever to surpass the mark, eclipsing the legendary Wilt Chamberlain...LA has won six of the last seven meetings....The Lakers finished their homestand 5-0...Los Angeles begins a three-game road trip on Tuesday at Indiana, while Toronto continues its three-game road swing in Denver on Tuesday... Toronto has lost seven straight at the Lakers.
