Lakers within sight of NBA title
NBA highlights - Lakers secure vital win
Derek Fisher hit a couple of clutch three-pointers as the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Orlando Magic 99-91 in overtime to take a 3-1 NBA Finals lead.
Orlando All-Star centre Dwight Howard missed two free throws 11.1 seconds from the end of regulation time with the Magic leading 87-84.
Fisher sunk a vital three to send the game into an extra period and then scored the crucial basket in overtime.
The Lakers will secure their 15th NBA crown by winning Game 5 on Sunday.
"On a championship run you're going to have moments where you just make big plays, and tonight was one of them," said Lakers guard Kobe Bryant, who scored 32 points.
"The guys stepped up. That's what the journey is about."
The Lakers lead the best-of-seven series 3-1 and can wrap up their first title since 2002 with a victory on Sunday in Orlando.
Bryant led the Lakers with 32 points but the 11-times AllStar and 2008 Most Valuable Player was not at his best, hitting only 11 of 31 shots. Pau Gasol and Trevor Ariza each added 16 for Los Angeles.
The Lakers got out of jail when Howard missed his two free throws - had he made even one of them, the Magic would likely have levelled the series at 2-2 and been in the hunt for their first title.
"I just missed them," said Howard, who misfired on eight of his 14 free-throw attempts. "I've been working on my free throws. They just weren't falling.
"There's no need to get down on myself. I think I did a lot of good things tonight, just free throws weren't there. Not just for me but for everybody."
After a time out the Lakers worked the ball upcourt and found Fisher open on the wing, and the veteran left-hander calmly sank the game-tying, three-pointer.
Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said his decision not to foul the Lakers when they were bringing the ball upcourt in the waning seconds of regulation "will haunt me forever."
 | There's no need for us to hold our heads down - we've been in some tough situations but as a team we've always found a way to come back Dwight Howard |
"We gave him so much space to shoot the ball," he said of Fisher's game-tying shot. "We played like we were trying to prevent the lay up.
"We did a good job, we denied Bryant the ball, and then we just didn't play Derek Fisher, just didn't guard him."
Hedo Turkoglu paced the Magic with 25 points, while Howard added 16 points and 21 rebounds. Orlando committed 17 turnovers and hit only 22 of 37 attempts from the free-throw line.
"We had it but just kind of slipped away because of our stupidness," said Turkoglu. "We can't be really down on ourselves, no matter what. Win or lose tonight, we have to win the game on Sunday."
Ariza scored 13 in the third quarter when the Lakers recovered from a 12-point deficit to take a four-point lead into the final frame.
The Magic went down by six in the final quarter, silencing the crowd of more than 17,000 at the Amway Arena, before rallying down the stretch.
Orlando are now hoping to become the first team to win the championship after facing a 3-1 deficit.
"There's no need for us to hold our heads down," said Howard. "We were always fighting and will believe until there's no more games to be played.
"We've been in some tough situations, but as a team we've always found a way to come back."
