Los Angeles Lakers: Lakers Hold Off Phoenix Suns in Triple Overtime Thriller

What a thrilling game this was!

It took three overtimes to finally decide a winner between the Los Angeles Lakers and Phoenix Suns on Tuesday. The two teams scored 276 points before they were finally able to walk off the court.

Not that the game wasn't expected to be good.

The Suns are trying to grab a playoff spot and the Lakers are trying to secure the second seed in the Western Conference, but who knew it would be this good?

A thriller that only showcases itself once a season—how many times in the second half and over the first two overtimes did the fans think the Lakers had the game in their hands?

I know I thought they had it sealed a handful of times, but Steve Nash and the Suns just kept fighting back.

After being down 21 points in the third quarter, they managed to come back and tie the game to send it to overtime.

The Lakers held a three-point lead in the first overtime, but Lamar Odom's foul on Channing Frye with 1.1 seconds left would force a second overtime, when Frye hit three straight free throws.

The Suns took a two-point lead, late in the second overtime, but Pau Gasol responded to Frye's made free throws with two of his own. This time, with only 2.5 seconds remaining on the clock.

In my opinion, there should have also been a goaltending call made on the shot that Gasol took while he was fouled—but how will complaining help at this point?

Then came the third overtime.

With the Lakers down by two, Kobe Bryant came up with a huge three-pointer, before Ron Artest followed with a steal and a monstrous dunk, shifting the momentum to the Lakers' side.

This eventually proved to be enough and the Lakers were able to seal the victory after a hard-fought game from both sides.

Nash had an amazing game today.

He finished with 19 points, five rebounds and 20 assists. He hit three straight three-point field goals in the third quarter to help keep the Suns in the game when they were down by 21. He made countless amazing passes to find his open men—the flashiest of which was late in the game, when he was falling out-of-bounds after having been double-teamed.

He managed to keep his pivot foot planted and, with his back facing towards his teammate, flipped the ball to Marcin Gortat. Gortat quickly found an open Frye for the three-pointer and the two-point lead.

There's no doubt Nash did everything in his power to give the Suns a chance to win tonight.

Gortat also played a really good game today, scoring 24 points and grabbing 16 boards, all while playing tough defense.

However, his night was overshadowed.

With about 14 seconds remaining in the third overtime, his team down by four points, Gortat received the inbounds pass and froze for about seven seconds before finally passing the ball off to a teammate.

With the Suns needing two possessions to win the game, I have no clue what "The Polish Hammer" was thinking on that play.

No one seemed to be open, but you have to move with the ball and try to score if you can't find the open man. It's funny how one play could overshadow 53 minutes of solid basketball.

Frye was the hero tonight for the Suns. He hit big shot after big shot to go along with his career-high 32 points and 14 rebounds.

This kid is proving himself to be a very clutch player, hitting two big game-winners on back-to-back nights last month.

On the Lakers' side, Bryant was his usual self, playing hard all game and producing a near triple-double with 42 points on 15-for-31 shooting, 12 rebounds and nine assists.

He also hit many big shots in this game and played great defense at the end of the second overtime in an effort to make sure there was a third overtime.

His running mate, Gasol, added 24 points and 13 rebounds tonight.

But the two heroes for the Lakers, besides Bryant, were Odom and Artest.

Both were very involved in the game and stepped up big in an effort to secure the win.

Odom had a huge night, scoring 29 points on 13-for-22 shooting, grabbing 16 rebounds and dishing five assists. He was very active on both ends of the floor and seemed to have the confidence of an NBA champion. He wasn't afraid to shoot the ball.

Ron Artest is someone I love, not only for his talent and skill, but also for his enthusiasm and the joy he brings to the basketball court.

He was very active on the defensive end tonight, coming up big in the third overtime and scoring five of his 18 points in the final two minutes. The man is finally starting to look comfortable for the first time this season.

After all was said and done, the Lakers came out on top, but the Suns made sure that everything was left on the court.

It came down to who was the better team, in the end, which the Lakers clearly are.

They now hold a game-and-a-half lead over the Dallas Mavericks for the second seed in the conference with 11 games remaining on their schedule. The Mavericks have 12 games remaining.

The Suns, on the other hand, are now three games behind the Memphis Grizzlies (who just lost Rudy Gay for the season) for the eighth seed, and a game behind the Houston Rockets for the ninth seed.

They have 13 games remaining on their schedule, while the other two teams both have 11 games remaining this season.