Kobe Bryant kept his right arm extended upward, his hand dangling as he held his follow-through on a 3-point shot with a minute to go.

The shot went down, the Lakers led by six, and Bryant wagged his index finger as he made his way back up the court with a good portion of the crowd cheering wildly.

Maintaining the vintage form he recaptured in a victory earlier this week, Bryant had 27 points and 12 rebounds, hitting three pivotal 3-pointers in the final 6:05, and the Los Angeles Lakers won their second straight, 99-96 over the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday night.

Bryant's missed free throw with 6 seconds left provided the Pelicans a chance to tie the game with a 3, but Jrue Holiday's shot missed the rim as time expired.

Anthony Davis had 39 points and 11 rebounds for the Pelicans, but his missed breakaway dunk in the fourth quarter - after which he briefly pulled his jersey over his face in embarrassment - seemed to define the night for New Orleans, which lost its third straight.

The Pelicans missed a couple of dunks among a number of misses from short range. They also missed 12 of 26 free throws.

Jordan Clarkson scored 18 points for the Lakers, while D'Angelo Russell added 13 points and Julius Randle 11.

Holiday scored 19 for New Orleans, but missed five of six 3s he attempts as New Orleans went 4-of-20 from deep. Ryan Anderson and Bryce Dejean-Jones each scored 17.