The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Toronto Raptors, 110-101, at Amalie Arena on Tuesday night.

The Lakers (32-19) had been merely an average squad at best during LeBron James' absence due to an ankle sprain, but in the first half Tuesday, the Raptors (20-31) got a very different version of the defending champions. Looking like they were at full strength, Los Angeles jumped out to a 68-42 halftime lead with excellent play on both ends of the floor. That essentially sealed the victory, even as Toronto made the final score look somewhat presentable with some scoring after the game was out of reach.

Talen Horton-Tucker led the way with 17 points, complementing them with six assists, four rebounds and one steal. Markieff Morris furnished 15 points, nine boards, one assist and one steal. Marc Gasol delivered 13 points, nine rebounds, five assists and four blocks. Alex Caruso and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope posted 13 points each while recording five and three rebounds, respectively. Dennis Schroder supplied 12 points, nine assists, two rebounds and two steals.

Pascal Siakam paced the Raptors with 27 points, supplementing them with seven rebounds, two assists, two steals and one block. Chris Boucher totaled 19 points, eight boards, one assist and one steal. DeAndre' Bembry offered 12 points, five rebounds, three assists and five steals. Gary Trent and Malachi Flynn posted matching 11-point tallies, with Flynn also collecting eight rebounds, four assists and two steals.

The Lakers remain on the road and head to South Florida to tangle with the Miami Heat on Thursday night, while the Raptors remain home and host the Chicago Bulls on Thursday night.