Kobe Bryant notched his seventh consecutive 30-point game, and the Lakers needed every one of them, including a pair of late buckets to squeak by Charlotte, 101-100.
The Lakers faced an 11-point deficit late in the third quarter when Bryant and co. engineered a 17-0 run that put them back in control.
But the Bobcats wouldn’t go away, tying the game at 97 with 1:30 left.
From there, Bryant took over by scoring on back-to-back possessions to hand the Lakers the lead for good. But it wasn’t without some drama, as Charlotte took three game-tying shots in the final seconds thanks to a platter of offensive rebounds.