PRO BASKETBALL — March 6

TORONTO at L.A. LAKERS
(Lakers -11, Total 209) — The Lakers looked kind of listless on their recent short road trip, losing in succession to the Heat, Bobcats and Magic, and hitting a combined 37% from the field in the last two of those games. Kobe Bryant has stepped things up with 99 points in his last three, but obviously proper ball distribution suffers. Not sure it matters against this slumping Toronto ball club, which has failed to cover its last seven against the number and is now in some jeopardy of slipping out of the playoff race if they continue to lose (five of last six). There’s some payback too, as the Lakers lost the last meeting by a point when Hedo Turkoglu hit a pair of free throws after a controversial foul. Also, we’re not too certain that Turkoglu and Chris Bosh, who have missed recent action, are back to being 100%.

THE PLAY: L.A. LAKERS -11 **

(All information is for news matter only; All games are graded on a scale of 1-4 stars. Lines are subject to change)