LOS ANGELES — The victory was monumental, the most significant one yet this season.

But as important as Lakers 87, Celtics 81 was Tuesday night, it was at least that unconvincing. Perhaps even more so.

Admit it. You don't like Pau Gasol as much as you did a couple weeks ago. Now, more than ever, you're certain Lamar Odom never can be trusted. And Derek Fisher as a steadying influence? Even that was shaken in triumph.

On a night when Boston's Big Three wasn't even close to being two and a half men, the Lakers needed every ounce of Kobe Bryant and way more Sasha Vujacic than anyone could have projected to avoid the prospect of being swept.

OK, maybe you're a die-hard and all that matters now are victories. There's plenty of truth in that.

But you'd have to close your eyes pretty tight and think awfully smiley thoughts to imagine the Lakers, even now trailing only two games to one, winning these NBA Finals.

And that's what this is all about, remember? A championship, not moving in the direction of a championship.

"As bad as we played, we still had opportunities," Boston's Ray Allen correctly concluded. "I don't think throughout the whole game, on either side of the floor, we were good."

The Celtics, in fact, were miserable, starting the first quarter 1 for 9 from the floor and the second quarter 1 for 7.

Paul Pierce was running up and down the court just fine, but it was his jump shot that needed a wheelchair.

Kevin Garnett shot 33.3 percent — on dunks. He was 1 of 3 converting from directly above the rim.

Yet, with no one other than Allen playing notably well, Boston was up entering the fourth quarter and still had the lead with seven minutes to go.

Asked if his team let a potential victory slip away, Celtics coach Doc Rivers said, "Well, either that or they should have blown us out."

Of course, the Lakers had a lot to do with Boston's leprechaun-sized shooting percentages.

They finally were the more aggressive team, standing up to the Celtics after being pushed and popped repeated in Games 1 and 2 on the road.

After being awarded only 10 free throws Sunday, the Lakers shot their 10th one Tuesday at the 4:59 mark of the first quarter.

They had guys slashing to the basket, had chests physically challenging Celtics drives, had hands holding and grabbing anything green. What a difference a gear makes, the Lakers finally picking it up.

"That team attacks you," Rivers said. "They were the aggressor. That's why they went to the foul line, and they deserved it."

Because of that, the Lakers basically saved their season, the possibility of coming back from a 3-0 deficit beyond unlikely.

But saved it for what? For another couple games? For the chance to lose this series back in Boston, then watch their longtime rivals celebrate? Saved it for the worst of all things, just for the time being?

At this level, playing into mid-June, the game is proving to be just too physical for Gasol, who is generally listed as a power forward but is currently playing center and actually looks more like a small forward.

He finished with 12 rebounds, and no one had more than that in Game 3. But it was the final minute of the third quarter before Gasol made his first field goal.

Anyone who ever has played a pick-up game would tell Gasol the same thing: "Weight room."

Odom's night was defined by personal fouls and low-lighted by turnovers. He ended the game with five each, while scoring only four points. His first basket also didn't come until the third quarter.

After weakly losing the ball on one drive late, Odom returned to the Lakers' bench to face something even more disheartening. Coach Phil Jackson confronted Odom and nearly barked the bald off his head.

"It was not," Jackson said afterward, "a beautiful ballgame."

Bryant missed seven free throws. Gasol and Odom combined to shoot 5 of 18 from the field. Fisher contributed one basket and little else in 28 minutes.

Still, the Lakers survived, mining a bit of hope, at least for their most optimistic fans. But there wasn't a lot of comfort to be found in the aftermath.

"It's great to win a game like this," forward Luke Walton said. "If you can win an ugly game, without playing a good game, then we might be able to do some good things."

That's the sunny side. The Lakers are back in this series, yeah. But watching Game 3, it felt more like they were back in it for a day, not really for the rest of the way.

Maybe the Lakers are convinced they can win these NBA Finals. The guess here, though, is the Celtics now are more convinced than ever.