Fast Start Finishes the Pistons : Pro basketball: Lakers take a 32-point lead in the first half, then hold on to beat Detroit, 105-97.

The Lakers won Friday night.

Scratch that.

The Lakers survived Friday night.

Survived the Detroit Pistons. Survived what would have been one of the most embarrassing losses in franchise history. Survived the fallout from fans and management, and not necessarily in that order.

“I thought we showed some ability to hang tough when things went the other way,” Laker Coach Randy Pfund said after they turned a 32-point advantage in the second quarter into a six-point lead in the fourth, then won, 105-97, before 13,235 at the Forum. “It would have been a tough one to lose.”

A tough one?

“It would have been a horrible one to lose,” Pfund said.

Especially considering what would have been wasted: George Lynch’s 18 rebounds--the most by a Laker rookie since Magic Johnson on March 7, 1980--and 20 points and three steals; Vlade Divac’s 19 points and 14 rebounds and the Lakers’ first back-to-back victories since Dec. 1-4.

All saved.

As if it wasn’t enough to simply let the Pistons back in contention, the Lakers played the limping-team act to the end. Two 24-second violations in the fourth quarter. Another 10-second violation. Making only five of 10 free throws those final 12 minutes that probably seemed like much more.

Even Nick Van Exel’s three-pointer, good for a 102-93 lead with 2:15 to play, was not enough to stop the monster comeback for good. The Pistons, led by Isiah Thomas’ 31 points, were still within striking distance, 102-95, with 1:20 left.

From there, they scored only a concession layup by Thomas with eight seconds remaining. The Lakers were finally in the clear. They were free to exhale.

“A win is a win,” Divac said. “Tomorrow, you will write about it. Next week, everybody will forget, right? People will say the Lakers beat the Pistons. Nobody will say by how much.”

It took the Lakers 3 1/2 minutes to build a double-digit lead, then another six minutes to go up by 18 points, 29-11. The cushion reached 48-23, by which time the Lakers were shooting 62% and outrebounding Detroit, 23-11.

And, still, it got worse for the Pistons.

When the deficit reached 30 points, 53-23, with 6:35 to play in the second quarter, they had three assists and 12 turnovers. When the 13th turnover, a bad pass by Thomas, was converted into a Laker basket, the deficit became 32, 57-25.

It seemed as though the Lakers could have won without showing up for the second half. So they gave that theory a test, allowing the Pistons to get within eight points, 87-79, heading into the fourth period.

A game had arrived, after all, just about 24 minutes late.

Laker Notes

Antonio Harvey tested his strained hip muscle before the game and found he still could not run and jump, then said he “won’t be in uniform, for sure, until after the All-Star break.” With Doug Christie also on about the same timetable because of his sprained ankle, that means the Lakers could have only 10 players for six more games. So why not put Christie and/or Harvey on the injured list and add someone to the roster? “We continue to talk about it,” Coach Randy Pfund said. “There’s just nobody out there we feel strong about bringing in. I think that’s what it comes down to. . . .” Friday marked the seventh game in a row Christie and Harvey missed.