It was not exactly the sort of inspired, confidence building effort the Lakers probably hoped for, but in the end it was enough for LA to get what it needed—a win. 

They beat the visiting, and badly slumping, Philadelphia 76ers 101-94 Friday night at the Crypt. 

The game was tight throughout, until down the stretch when the Lakers pushed the pedal down a little harder than the Sixers could manage. There were some notable performances, starting with Anthony Davis and his 23/19 line. Spencer Dinwiddie had his best game as a Laker (by a lot), playing high end defense while chipping in with 11 points in 23 minutes. 

There were even more subpar ones, however. LeBron James was inefficient and a turnover machine (TK overall). D'Angelo and Rui Hachimura weren't exactly models of consistent production, either. Outside of Dinwiddie's points, the Lakers had only five more from the bench. And they turned the ball over 28,502 times. Ok, it was only 21, but that's a lot, and it's what kept a vastly inferior team in the game. 

But, in the end, the Lakers go tthe win they needed, and even gained a game on Golden State after the Warriors took a surprising home loss to the Pacers (who will be in LA to face the Lakers on Sunday). Every bit of breathing room over the Warriors in the 9/10 battle matters, and meanwhile the Lakers kept the dream of moving up alive. 

In the spirit of that other big basketball event happening around the country, survive and advance. 

HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky 

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