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Lakers Winning Streak Ends at Nine
04.04.11
Kobe Bryant forcing his way for a shot against Nuggets.
The Lakers played sloppy, shot the ball poorly, Pau Gasol hurt his knee, and they lost the services of Andrew Bynum late. All of that added up to a disappointing 95-90 loss to the Denver Nuggets on Sunday afternoon at Staples Center.
Kobe Bryant scored 28 points, but shot just 10-27 from the floor, and was clearly bothered by the Nuggets’ aggressive defense against him, and the lack of foul calls.
His frustration boiled over and he picked up his 13th technical foul in the second quarter after slamming the court with his hand after a missed shot. He also missed several shots in the fourth quarter, including a key baseline jumper in the final moments with the game still on the line.
The Lakers also got a huge scare when Gasol went down clutching his knee after taking a hard foul on a made basket in the third quarter. He briefly went to the locker room, but did return to finish the game. Team officials have said he will have a precautionary MRI on Monday. Gasol finished the game with 16 points and 12 rebounds, but clearly didn’t have the same impact on the game after injuring his knee.
Bynum also left the game Sunday with seven minutes left after tweaking his knee on a collision with Lamar Odom. He appeared to grab his knee on the bench, but said after the game he was fine and expects to play on Tuesday against Utah. He scored eight points and grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds.
The Lakers led 47-40 at halftime in a very uneven game, with neither team shooting the ball well. The second half was a grind, the Lakers held the lead late in the third until Denver went on a run, and briefly grabbed the advantage. The score was tied at 69 at the end of the quarter.
The Lakers opened up a 75-69 lead early in the fourth, but the Nuggets took over from there. Point guard Raymond Felton scored all 16 of his points in the second half, including several key buckets down the stretch to keep Denver ahead.
With Denver up 91-83, the Lakers scored four straight and had the ball with under a minute left, but Bryant missed a tough baseline shot. The Nuggets split two free throws to go up 92-87. Odom, who had 17 points and seven rebounds off the bench, hit a three-pointer with 16 seconds left to bring the Lakers to within two. After Nene made his first free throw, he missed the second, and Kenyon Martin forced Odom under the basket to grab the putback, which effectively closed the door on the Lakers’ winning streak.
For the game the Lakers shot just 42.9% (36-84) from the floor and 4-18 (22.2%) from beyond the arc. They outrebounded Denver 45-44, but were undone by the 20 turnovers they committed. The Nuggets shot just 43.9% (36-82) from the field themselves, and turned the ball over 17 times as well.
Danilo Gallanari led the Nuggets with 22 points and seven rebounds. Kenyon Martin had 18 points and eight rebounds, and Nene scored 12 to go along with seven boards.
The loss dropped the Lakers 2.5 behind the Spurs for first in the Western Conference with six games left. The Lakers are now 17-2 since the All-Star break.
The champs’ next game is Tuesday night at Staples Center against the Utah Jazz, who were eliminated from the playoff race on Friday by the Lakers. After Tuesday’s game, the Lakers go on the road at Golden St. on Wednesday, and then Portland on Friday.
Lakers Take Care of Clips to Extend Streak
03.26.11
Kobe Bryant drives hard to basket against Clippers.
It wasn’t a blowout, but the Lakers led wire-to-wire as they held off the Clippers 112-104 Friday night at Staples Center, to push their post-All-Star game record to 14-1.
Kobe Bryant had a game-high 37 points, coming off his season-high 42 points against Phoenix on Tuesday. He hit 11-21 shots from the field, and went to the line 17 times, connecting on 14 of them. He also had six and assists and four rebounds, and scored 12 points in the fourth quarter.
Pau Gasol, who scored 26 points and had eight rebounds, raised $26,000 for Japan relief as he donated $1,000 for every point he scored in the game. Ron Artest had 15 points, five rebounds, three blocks, three steals, and played superb defense all night on the Clippers’ leading-scorer Eric Gordon, holding him to seven points on 3-14 from the field.
The Lakers jumped out fast on the Clips, taking a 30-14 lead late the in the first quarter. The Clippers rallied in the second quarter and closed to 37-35, but never did get any closer in the first half. The champs led at the break 57-48.
In the second half, the Lakers continued to maintain a healthy lead, pulling ahead by 12 on several occasions, only to see their hallway neighbors continue to battle back. After three the Lakers only led 85-80.
The Clippers kept it close in the fourth, closing the gap to two on several possessions. With Lakers leading by four with 40 seconds left, Artest made a great defensive play in the open court, taking the ball away from rookie sensation Blake Griffin who was heading in for a dunk. The game was sealed when Andrew Bynum tipped in a missed Derek Fisher free throw with under 20 seconds left.
Tempers flared again for the two teams, as Fisher and Clipper center got into a yelling match when Fisher threw out his elbow after a hard screen set on him by Kaman, in the final seconds. Kaman appeared to tell Fisher he’d meet him in the parking lot after the game, as he was being ejected with two technical fouls. Fisher was also assessed a technical.
Both teams shot the ball well from the floor. The Lakers hit 50.0% (39-78) and the Clippers also hit half of their shots (42-84). Neither team shot the three ball well, the Lakers went 6-18 (33.3%) and the Clips 5-17 (29.4%) One of the big differences in the game was the Lakers going to the line 39 times, hitting 28, while the Clippers went 15-18 from the charity stripe. The Lakers won the rebound battle, 41-34, and committed two less turnovers at 16-14.
For the Clippers, Mo Williams had a season-high 30 points and six assists, hitting 11-16 from the floor and 4-7 from the three-point line. Griffin had a fairly quiet 22 points and only six rebounds, but did have a few highlight dunks, which as become the norm for him nightly. Randy Foye had 12 off the bench, and Al-Farouq Aminu scored 11 points off the bench as well.
The Lakers moved their record to 52-20 as they won their sixth straight, and now lead the Dallas Mavericks by 1.5 games for second place in the Western Conference standings. They also only trail the San Antonio Spurs by 5.0 games with 10 left to play. They won their eighth straight game at Staples, and took the season series against the Clippers 3-1.
Los Angeles tries to continue their undefeated homestand against the New Orleans Hornets on Sunday. The Hornets lost their leading-scorer David West to a torn ACL this week, so they will rely much more on All-Star point guard Chris Paul to pick up the scoring slack, as they battle for playoff position in the West. The Hornets are currently in seventh place in the conference.
Kobe and Fish Rally Lakers Past Blazers
03.21.11
Kobe Bryant shoots jumper against Portland.
Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher have 10 championship rings between the two of them. On Sunday night they provided a glimpse as to why, as they both hit several big buckets late, rallying the Lakers to an 84-80 win over the Portland Trail Blazers at Staples Center.
The Lakers played the game without center Andrew Bynum, who was suspended two games by the NBA for his flagrant foul on Friday night. Without Bynum patrolling the paint, the Blazers were able to dominate the Lakers on the glass, and led the game for most of the night despite very poor shooting. In fact, neither team looked good on offense.
Bryant led the Lakers with 22 points, but scored 10 of them in the fourth quarter with the game very much in doubt. His short jumper in the lane with just over a minute left gave the Lakers an 80-76. Thirty seconds later, he hit a picture-perfect fallaway baseline jumper over Brandon Roy that gave the Lakers an 82-77 lead. That seemingly was the dagger for the champs.
However Portland wouldn’t quit. After they got to within two at 82-80, Fisher stuck a 17-foot jumper with 10 seconds left and the shot clock running out to seal the victory the Lakers. Fisher also had two sensational defensive plays in the final minutes, and scored a layup with just under two left to put the Lakers up 78-76, a lead they would never relinquish.
The win pushed the surging champs to 12-1 since the All-Star game, and clinched their fourth straight Pacific Division crown. They also stayed one game ahead of the Dallas Mavericks for the second place in the Western Conference standings. Los Angeles is now 3-0 against Blazers this year, marking the first time since the 2004-05 season the Lakers will win the season series.
Lamar Odom, starting for Bynum, scored 16 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Pau Gasol had 14 points and 13 rebounds, and Ron Artest chipped in with 10 points.
For the game, the Lakers held Portland to a miserable 38.6% (32-83) from the field and just 6-25 (24.0%) from the three-point line. Neither team shot the ball particularly well. The Lakers did finish at 44.9% (35-78) from the floor, but just 3-17 (17.6%) from beyond the arc. The one bright spot was they hit 11 of their 12 free throws. Portland won the rebound battle easily 45-35, including 17-9 at the offensive end, certainly a sign the Lakers missed Bynum’s presence in the middle.
Nicolas Batum led the Blazers with 25 points, scoring 22 of them in the first three quarters. He did make 4-9 from long range. LaMarcus Aldridge scored 18 points to go along with six rebounds, and Rudy Fernandez was the only other Portland player in double figures. He had 10 points, but hit just 3-10 shots. At one point the Portland went on 15-0 scoring run in the game, spanning halftime.
The Trail Blazers did lose forward/center Marcus Camby late in the game as he appeared to injure his ankle. A big loss for a team trying to make a push towards the playoffs, and with a tough schedule coming up.
The Lakers are now 3-0 on their seven-game homestand, and will take on the Phoenix Suns Tuesday night at Staples Center. The last time the Suns were in Los Angeles, they hit 22-40 three-pointers on their way to a shocking 121-116 win back on November 14. The Lakers have won both games in Phoenix this season.
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.
Lakers Escape Past Rockets in OT
02.02.11
Heroes against Houston, Kobe Bryant and Lamar Odom.
The Lakers needed an extra five minutes to get it done, but they were able to escape Tuesday night with a 114-106 win over the fiesty Houston Rockets, to avoid a disastrous three-game losing streak at home.
Kobe Bryant had 32 points, 11 assists, and six rebounds on 13-25 from the floor, hitting a floater in the lane with 38 seconds left in overtime to put the Lakers up 110-106, as they held on for the eight-point win that was every bit a grind.
Lamar Odom had his second career 20/20 game, scoring 20 points and grabbing 20 rebounds in a starting role, as the Lakers played without Andrew Bynum who missed the game with a bruised knee. Pau Gasol rebounded from two terrible games to score 26 points and 16 rebounds, including the tie-breaking layup in overtime that put the world champs ahead for good.
The injury-depleted Rockets kept the game close all night. After the Lakers built a 43-31 lead early in the second quarter, Houston quickly fought back and trailed only 54-48 at halftime, and the Lakers never regained that strong momentum again until late in overtime.
In the second half, the Rockets came out fired up, and at one point took a 68-63 lead midway through the third quarter. The Lakers rallied back and held a six-point lead with just over two minutes left in the game. But Houston refused to go away, and tied the game with 5.5 seconds left on a wide-open layup by Luis Scola. Odom then missed an off-balance three-pointer at the buzzer to send the game into overtime.
In the extra session, the Rockets took a 104-100 lead on a jumper by Scola with 2:48 left, before the Lakers went on a 10-2 run, capped off by Bryant’s basket with 38 ticks left. That was enough to get the Lakers the much-needed victory after two very difficult losses to Sacramento and Boston at home.
Kevin Martin led the Rockets with 30 points, and oddly enough was the only Rocket to get to the foul line, hitting 10-11. Luis Scola had 24 points and 15 rebounds, and Aaron Brooks scored 16 off the bench, although he hit just 2-10 from beyond the arc.
The Lakers, who had just 10 assists on Sunday, had 22 against the Rockets. Bryant, who had zero dimes against Boston, had seven alone in the first quarter, as he looked to get his teammates involved early. And this time, they made the shots.
For the game the Lakers shot 48.4% (44-91) from the field, and outrebounded the Rockets 54-44. Gasol and Odom combined for 36 of the 54 boards. The Lakers also had 16 offensive rebounds. But they allowed way too many second-chance points, letting Houston grab 16 offensive rebounds themselves. The second-chance baskets and easy layups made the game a lot closer than it should have been.
The Rockets shot just 43.0% (43-100) from the floor, and took a whopping 38 three-pointers, hitting just 10 (26.3%). In fact Houston’s point guards, Kyle Lowry and Brooks, combined to go a miserable 2-16 from beyond the arc, and just 10-30 from the field overall.
The Lakers’ next game is Thursday night at home against the team with the best record in the NBA, the San Antonio Spurs, at an amazing 40-8. The Spurs did lose to Portland 99-86 on Tuesday night however. This will be the second meeting of the year between the two teams. The Spurs dominated the Lakers in the second half in San Antonio en route to a 97-82 win on December 28th.
It is unknown whether Bynum will be back for Thursday’s game, but coach Phil Jackson didn’t sound optimistic, especially with the center’s history of knee problems. Bynum did play in the first game, scoring 10 points off the bench.
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