The San Antonio Spurs were in control of most of the fourth quarter Wednesday despite a poor shooting night from Victor Wembanyama. 

But the Los Angeles Lakers rallied from a 106-97 deficit for a 118-116 win behind a big effort from Luka Dončić. They survived a near-collapse down the stretch to hold on for the win.

Dončić pulled up for a 3 with 2:31 remaining to give the Lakers their first lead of the quarter at 113-112. Less than a minute later, Wembanyama was called for for a charge for his sixth foul of the game. 

The Spurs finished the game without their superstar, and the Lakers held on for win in the battle of two of the West's best early-season teams. 

Dončić came up one rebound short of a triple-double with 35 points, 13 assists, nine rebounds and five steals. He struggled from the field on a 9-of-27 shooting night. But he did enough across the board to lead the Lakers to victory. 

By his lofty standards, Wembanyama struggled for a second straight game while posting 19 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 block. He shot just 5 of 14 from the field and watched the game's final 1:40 seconds from the bench after fouling out. 

The Lakers almost blew it late after appearing to have the win secured. Marcus Smart committed a turnover on an inbounds pass when he failed to get both feet out of bonds before delivering the pass with 1.2 seconds remaining. 

The Lakers then fouled Julian Champagnie on a shot with 0.2 seconds remaining after an inbounds pass with 0.4 seconds remaining. But Champagnie missed both free throws, and the Lakers survived with the 2-point victory.