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Lakers Grind One Out Against Timberwolves
03.18.11
Andrew Bynum blocks Kevin Love's shot.
The Lakers have won 11 of 12 games since the All-Star break, but Friday night’s win against the lowly Minnesota Timberwolves may have been the toughest victory of the bunch.
The Lakers overcame Kobe Bryant’s struggles with his sore ankle, and Andrew Bynum’s fourth quarter ejection to beat the Wolves 106-98 at Staples Center.
Pau Gasol scored 25 points and four blocks on 12-17 from the field, as the Lakers battled back from an early 10-point deficit. Bryant struggled with his shot most of the night but did finish with 18 points, five assists, and four rebounds. Bynum had 10 points and 14 rebounds before he was tossed in the fourth quarter after a Flagrant 2 foul call on Michael Beasley.
Bynum, who again was dominant on the defensive end again, struggled a bit offensively and was clearly frustrated late in the game after missing a dunk and committing an offensive foul.
As Beasley drove to the rim, Bynum jumped up and threw out his hip and elbow into Beasley who went crashing to the floor, but did get up angrily very quickly. Bynum was ejected after officials checked the replay. Beasley made both foul shots, but left the game moments later with a sore hip. At the time the Wolves still held the lead.
Bryant who scored just six points in the first half, scored 12 in the second half, and hit some crucial jump shots late to get the Lakers back out in front. He didn’t start the second half, as it appeared he was getting extra work done on his sprained ankle during halftime. Shannon Brown started the third quarter and finished with 14 points off the bench.
With the Wolves clinging to an 89-88 lead, the Lakers went on a 12-6 run, highlighted by a Lamar Odom three-pointer with just over 1:30 left in the game that put the Lakers up by their biggest margin of the night 100-94. Minnesota could get no closer than five in the final minute as the Lakers extended their winning streak over the Timberwolves to 15 games. The Wolves haven’t beaten the Lakers since March of 2007.
For the game, the Lakers shot 47.6% (40-84) from the field, including 8-19 (42.1%) from beyond the arc. They held Minnesota to 44.3% (39-88) from the floor and just 7-21 (33.3%) from long range. The Wolves did win the rebound battle 45-44, but actually held a double-digit rebound lead early in the game.
Wesley Johnson led all scorers with 29 points on 11-21 from the floor for Minnesota. Michael Beasley had 18 points and seven rebounds before he left the game, and Kevin Love tallied another double-double with 15 points and 13 rebounds.
The win put the Lakers in sole position of second place in the Western Conference at 49-20, one full game ahead of Dallas, who lost to San Antonio 97-91 on Friday.
The world champs continue their seven-game homestand on Sunday night against the surging Portland Trail Blazers. Los Angeles has beaten Portland twice already this season. They could however be without the services of Bynum, who may face a league suspension for his flagrant foul on Beasley. That could pose a problem against the suddenly very big and healthy Trail Blazer team.
The Lakers Nation Podcast for 03.14.11
03.15.11
For those interested in hearing The Lakers Nation Podcast, we have provided links and information for their newest broadcast right here. Enjoy.
David Brickley, and Kevin Figgers come to The Lakers Nation for another LIVE post-game edition of the Voice of the Nation.
Rundown –
- Lakers-Orlando Post-Game report
- Andrew Bynum speaks on his improved play
- Was the controversy over Kobe’s Miami postgame shooting overblown?
- How did Kobe get Brandy to go to his Prom with him?:
- How does Phil Jackson think Kobe compares to Michael Jordan?
- Around the NBA
- What was Ron Artest doing at 3:30am on Sunday?
- Kendrick Perkins has choice words for Phil, Kobe and Pau
- Theo Ratliff injury update
- and Much MUCH More
Additional Audio –
- AM570 KLAC
- MTV
- ESPN TV
- Artest Media Group
Download Link: Voice of the Nation – Episode #122
Like Us: Facebook
Andrew Bynum Helps Lakers Roll Over Magic
03.15.11
Andrew Bynum grabs one of his 18 rebounds.
If Andrew Bynum continues to play defense and rebound the way he has since the All-Star break, the Lakers will be a very difficult team to beat yet again come playoff time.
Bynum scored 10 points, grabbed a game-high 18 rebounds, and blocked four shots, as the Lakers overcame a five-point halftime deficit and pushed their way easily past the Orlando Magic 97-84 at Staples Center on Monday night.
The Lakers are 10-1 since the All-Star game, and continue to play well against the league’s elite teams. The win on Monday pulled the champs (48-20) virtually even with the Dallas Mavericks (47-19) for second in the Western Conference standings. Both teams are 6.5 games behind the San Antonio Spurs.
Kobe Bryant, playing despite a sore right ankle, scored 16 points, but struggled shooting just 7-19 from the field. He only needed to play a little over 30 minutes on this night however. Pau Gasol scored a game-high 23 points, Lamar Odom had 16 points and seven rebounds off the bench, and Derek Fisher chipped in 15 points. The Lakers had five players score in double figures.
The Magic were able to stay ahead early thanks to some hot shooting from the three-point line, and the Lakers’ inability to put the ball in the basket. In fact, the Lakers shot just 27% in the first quarter, but trailed only by six (25-19) thanks to the second efforts on the boards by Bynum, who had nine offensive rebounds for the game.
The Lakers trailed 46-41 at the half, but took over defensively in the second half. The game was still close after three quarters with Los Angeles nursing a 71-66 lead, until the Lakers’ reserves put together an 18-5 run against the Orlando starters to push the game to 85-69 with just over seven minutes left. The Magic were never able to get closer than 11 points the rest of the way as the two-time defending champs cruised to the victory.
Dwight Howard had 22 points and 15 rebounds, but did most of his damage with the game out of reach, and Bynum on the bench. He also turned the ball over a horrific nine times. He was also nowhere near as dominant as the first time the two teams met in Orlando, and was rejected near the rim twice by Bynum, a sign that this would be no easy night for the All-Star.
Jameer Nelson and Ryan Anderson each scored 13 points, and Hedo Turkoglu added 12. Orlando got just 13 points from their bench, including an 0-6 performance from the field from Gilbert Arenas, who continues to have a disastrous season since being traded from Washington earlier this year.
For the game, the Magic did out shoot the Lakers from the field, 47.1% to 43.8%, but the Lakers’ shooting woes were mostly in the first half. They shot over 50% in the second half. Los Angeles outrebounded Orlando 41-39, including 14-6 at the offensive end. The Magic as a team turned the ball over 18 times to the Lakers’ five giveaways. Orlando did make 10-23 (43.5%) from beyond the arc, but struggled after a hot start.
Monday’s win was the first of seven straight home games for the Lakers, as they continue their strong push towards the playoffs. They now get four days off until they host Minnesota on Friday night.
Update on Recent Lakerstats Story Inactivity
03.13.11
I’ve gotten some emails asking why our game recaps haven’t been updated in about a month. Well to just answer in one place, the reason is simply that real life took over for a bit, and I just had some other priorities that unfortunately didn’t allow me to write the recaps. However ALL stats, box scores, etc. are updated after every game. So you can always count on those being current no matter what. I make sure those are all always done. That’s what this site is really about in the end, a statistical database.
Also, while I was out of town last week, somehow a settings file got corrupted during a server backup, and you’ll notice some of the boxes and the sides of the site, and some of the main content pages look a little wonky. I have to recreate the CSS for those boxes unfortunately, so I will slowly be doing that this week so they look right. All the info is intact, they just don’t look pretty right now. But hang tight, they will be back to normal soon.
The game recaps should also begin again this week, as things are getting more normal again for me.
Thanks for all the emails and interest in the site, I didn’t honestly realize the stories were that important to people. It’s great to hear. And thanks for your support of the site!
Regards,
Brett
Lakers Make Short Work of Knicks Again
02.11.11
Kobe Bryant pours in two of his 33 against the Knicks.
The Lakers had no problems putting away the Knicks early for the second time this season, as they rolled over the New Yorkers 113-96 at Madison Square Garden on Friday night.
Kobe Bryant was the star on this night, unleashing his entire repertoire of shots on the star-filled New York crowd, as he played yet another stellar game in one of the NBA’s most-storied buildings.
Bryant finished the game with 33 points and 10 rebounds on 12-17 shooting from the floor, playing just under 29 minutes. He scored 19 of his 33 in the first quarter, including a buzzer-beating turnaround jumper that put the Lakers up 30-28 after one.
Pau Gasol had a solid game with 20 points and six rebounds, and he also got a long rest on the bench as the Lakers led by double-figures for most of the night.
Lamar Odom had 14 points off the bench, Andrew Bynum scored 12 points and grabbed nine boards, and Shannon Brown hit six of his 10 shots, including a highlight-reel alley-oop dunk in the second quarter, en route to 12 points.
The Knicks stayed close early, trailed by just two after one quarter, and took the lead early in the second. But the Lakers’ bench came in and took the game away from the home team, and the Lakers built a 62-48 lead at halftime.
In the third quarter, Bryant hit a jumper over Danilo Gallinari to put the Lakers up 70-52. The Knicks then made their last real run of the night, going on a 10-1 burst to close to within nine at 71-62. But the Lakers responded and scored six straight, culminating with a three-pointer by Bryant from the right side to go up 77-62. New York never got closer than 11 points the rest of the game, trailing by as many as 20 in the fourth quarter, as the champs cruised to the easy victory.
The Lakers shot 53.6% (45-84) from the field for the game, and 6-15 (40.0%) from the three-point line. But it was their defense that was most-impressive on this night, as they held the high-scoring Knicks to just 41.2% (32-85) from the floor and a miserable 5-20 (25.0%) from beyond the arc. New York did outrebound the Lakers 44-41, but most of that rebound advantage was gained in the fourth quarter with the game well over.
Amar’e Stoudemire led the Knicks with 20 points and 10 rebounds, but shot just 9-20 from the field, turning the ball over six times, and picking up a technical foul. Raymond Felton had a solid all-around game with 20 points and seven assist on 7-12 from the floor. Gallanari had 14 points, but hit just 4-15 from the field, including 0-6 from beyond the arc.
The Knicks have now lost to the Lakers eight straight times, including four in a row at Madison Square Garden. The Lakers moved their road record to 19-8, which surprisingly now matches their home record.
Los Angeles is now 4-0 on their current road trip, which takes them next to Orlando to go up against Dwight Howard and the Magic for the first time this season on Sunday. From there they head to Charlotte on Monday, and finish off the seven-game trip on Wednesday against the woeful Cleveland Cavaliers.
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