SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Luka Doncic had 45 points, 14 assists and 11 rebounds in his fifth triple-double of the season, and the Los Angeles Lakers used a big fourth quarter to top the Utah Jazz 143-135 on Thursday night.
LeBron James had 28 points and 10 assists for the Lakers, who outscored the Jazz 41-29 in the fourth quarter.
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Los Angeles Lakers forward Lebron James reacts after a play against the Utah Jazz during the first quarter of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rob Gray)
Utah Jazz guard Ace Bailey (19) looks. to shoot a 3-point basket over Los Angeles Lakers forward Jake Laravia, left, during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rob Gray)
Los Angeles Lakers forward Lebron James (23) posts up against Utah Jazz guard Svi Mykhailiuk, left, during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rob Gray)
Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) moves the ball against Utah Jazz guard Keyonte George (3) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rob Gray)
Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) shoots against the Utah Jazz during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rob Gray)
The Lakers led by 12 in the period but the Jazz cut it to 134-130 before Doncic found Jaxson Hayes for his final assist and the cushion the Lakers needed to clinch the win.
Hayes was 7 of 7 for 16 points and is a perfect 26 of 26 in six games against Utah as a Laker.
Utah played without leading scorer Lauri Markkanen (groin), while the Lakers were missing regular starters Deandre Ayton (elbow) and Austin Reaves (calf).
Keyonte George scored 33 points, his third straight game with more than 30. Rookie Ace Bailey added 19 points for Utah, which hasn't won three consecutive games all season.
The Lakers won for the third time in four games despite allowing their most points this season.
The Jazz shot 65% and led 78-73 at halftime — their second-best offensive performance of the season. Meanwhile, Doncic scored or assisted on 16 of the Lakers’ 27 baskets in the first half to keep them close.
The Jazz attempted a season-high 47 free throws (making 31) and the Lakers’ frustration boiled over in the third quarter as Marcus Smart, Hayes and Doncic all received technical fouls.
James made two free throws to cap a 10-0 run and lift the Lakers to a 114-108 lead after they had trailed since the second minute of the game. He tweaked his knee midway through the second quarter and then got hit on the jaw a few plays late, but stayed on the court.
Lakers: At Los Angeles Clippers on Saturday.
Jazz: Host Orlando Magic on Saturday.
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA
Los Angeles Lakers forward Lebron James reacts after a play against the Utah Jazz during the first quarter of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rob Gray)
Utah Jazz guard Ace Bailey (19) looks. to shoot a 3-point basket over Los Angeles Lakers forward Jake Laravia, left, during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rob Gray)
Los Angeles Lakers forward Lebron James (23) posts up against Utah Jazz guard Svi Mykhailiuk, left, during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rob Gray)
Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) moves the ball against Utah Jazz guard Keyonte George (3) during the first half of an NBA basketball game Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rob Gray)
Los Angeles Lakers guard Luka Doncic (77) shoots against the Utah Jazz during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, Dec. 18, 2025, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Rob Gray)
BANGKOK (AP) — Thailand on Thursday helped launch a global effort to fight the spread of online scams that include criminal enterprises based largely in Southeast Asia estimated to bilk billions of dollars annually from victims around the world.
Thailand's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime hosted a conference in Bangkok on Wednesday and Thursday culminating in the announcement of the new initiative called the Global Partnership Against Online Scams.
Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said in his keynote speech Wednesday that online scams “reveal a deeper problem — a collective vulnerability that no country can address alone.”
The partnership agreement signed by conference participants Thailand, Bangladesh, Nepal, Peru and the United Arab Emirates will include political commitment, law enforcement, victim protection and public awareness and cross-border collaboration, a statement said.
The conference received assistance from the private sector including internet giants Meta and TikTok.
Meta, the corporate owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, presented a threat report underlining the increased use of artificial intelligence by scam networks and protocols the company is using in its attempts to stop scams on its social media platforms.
Social media application TikTok signed on to the conference's closing statement, becoming one of the first private sector members of the partnership. The company on Thursday also said it had signed agreements with major investors to form a new TikTok U.S. joint venture.
TikTok, which primarily focuses on short-form videos is one of the world's most popular social media platforms but has faced challenges from various governments including the U.S. over its Chinese ownership, the European Union over transparency breaches, Canada regarding child protection protocols and data sharing in Indonesia.
Scam centers, which extort money from victims online through bogus investment schemes and faked loved interests, have proliferated across Southeast Asia. Scam victims lost between $18 billion and $37 billion in 2023, the UNODC estimates.
The importance of private partnerships in anti-scam initiatives was stressed throughout the two-day conference in Thailand's capital, which was attended by more than 300 participants from nearly 60 countries.
Brian Hanley, Asia-Pacific director of the Global Anti-Scam Alliance, which TikTok joined this month, explained it will be harder to combat criminal networks without “all the major stakeholders at the table."
“Scams are exploiting, not only transnational boundaries, but also the seams across various platforms from banks, telcos, to social media platforms,” Hanley said.
The alliance describes itself as a collective effort to combat the scam problem by governments, law enforcement, consumer protection organizations and companies involved in social media, cybersecrity and other aspects of the internet.
“TikTok is the one that we’re talking about today, but hopefully tomorrow everyone’s joining,” Hanley said. “We’re starting to get critical mass and momentum as everyone realizes it’s affecting their bottom lines and consumer trust.”
Recent scam center raids in Myanmar, victim repatriation issues in Thailand and the death of a South Korean student forced into scam work in Cambodia have spurred demand for regional action.
Cambodia is known as a hub for scam compounds and has been criticized by its neighbor Thailand, but the two countries are engaged in an armed conflict and Cambodia was not represented at the conference.
Similar pledges to fight scam networks were made by members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in the months leading up to the Bangkok conference.
They include the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime, which more than 70 countries signed in October in Vietnam. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres called the document “a vow that no country, no matter their level of development, will be left defenseless against cybercrime.”
FILE - In this image provided by the Myanmar military on Oct. 19, 2025, soldiers stand next to Starlink satellite internet devices as they seize KK Park online scam center in Myawaddy township, Karen State, Myanmar. (The Myanmar Military True News Information Team via AP, File)
FILE - In this image provided by the Myanmar military on Oct. 19, 2025, soldiers raid the KK Park online scam center in Myawaddy township, Karen State, Myanmar. (The Myanmar Military True News Information Team via AP, File)
FILE - People from China, Vietnam and Ethiopia, believed to have been trafficked and forced to work in scam centers, sit with their faces masked while in detention after being released from the centers in Myawaddy district in eastern Myanmar, Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. (AP Photo/Thanaphon Wuttison, File)
Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul delivers his keynote speech during the International Conference on the Global Partnership against Online Scams in Bangkok, Thailand, on Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Anton L. Delgado)
Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul answers journalists' questions during the International Conference on the Global Partnership against Online Scams in Bangkok, Thailand, on Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Anton L. Delgado)
