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Lakers Blow Late Lead in Utah
11.27.10
Kobe drives to basket past Deron Williams.
Things were looking in good Utah. Kobe Bryant had scored 14 points over a two-minute stretch in the fourth quarter, and the Lakers had a five-point lead with just over two-minutes left. That’s where the fun ended in Salt Lake City on Friday night.
The Utah Jazz scored the last 11 points of the game, withstanding Bryant’s late scoring barrage, and defeated the Lakers 102-96. They also trailed the world champs by 19 points early in the game, but erased that deficit to take a 75-72 lead after three quarters.
Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 31 points, playing just under 34 minutes. Pau Gasol scored 21 and grabbed 11 rebounds, bouncing back from a sub-par game against Chicago on Tuesday. Lamar Odom had 16 points and 10 rebounds.
It looked like the game would be a laugher early, as the Lakers led 33-17 after one quarter, and still held a double-digit lead midway through the second. That’s when the Jazz’ bench, led by Ronnie Price, came in and sparked a rally that got them back in the game before halftime.
After the break, the game was a dogfight, as the lead changed hand several times, with no team leading by more than five points until the final score. The play of the game turned out to be Bryant losing the ball out front, and Raja Bell scoring an uncontested layup to put the Jazz up 98-96. Ron Artest then missed a wide-open three-pointer, and the Jazz made all their free throws down the stretch for the win.
Deron Williams led the Jazz with 29 points (10-14 from the field), and 12 assists. Al Jefferson, who hadn’t played on a team that had beaten the Lakers since 2005, scored 20 points, and grabbed eight rebounds. Paul Milsap had 13 points and eight rebounds for the Jazz, who moved to 12-5 on the season.
It was the second straight poor-shooting game for the Lakers, as they managed to hit just 41.8% from the field, and just 4-15 (26.7%) from the three-point line. In fact, Steve Blake and Derek Fisher alone combined to shoot 0-6 from beyond the arc. It was also the Lakers’ second straight game under 100 points, the first time that’s happened all year.
The loss dropped the Lakers to 13-3, and left them still 1/2 game behind San Antonio for first place in the Western Conference. Their next game is home on Sunday against the Indiana Pacers, who earlier this week knocked off the Miami Heat 93-77 in Miami. The Lakers head out for a quick two-game road trip after Sunday’s game.
Link: Lakers @ Jazz Box Score
Lakers Sweep Trip, Pummel Timberwolves
11.19.10
Pau Gasol battles down low against Timberwolves.
The Lakers completed a perfect 3-0 road trip, with a 112-95 whitewashing of the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Target Center on Friday night.
It was also a perfect night for Matt Barnes, and not just figuratively. Off the bench, he led the Lakers with 24 points, and went a perfect 7-7 from the field, including 5-5 from the 3-point line, and 5-5 from the foul line. And to top it off, he also had seven rebounds, six assists, and two steals. This was easily Barnes’ best game as a Laker and maybe of his career.
Kobe Bryant had 23 points and eight rebounds, and several highlight plays despite shooting just 8-27 from the field. Pau Gasol shook off tweaking his ankle early in third quarter, and scored 16 points and grabbed 14 rebounds. Lamar Odom added 11 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists.
The Lakers didn’t take the Wolves lightly this time like they did in Los Angeles two weeks ago. They came to play from the start, led 51-41 at halftime, and by as much as 23 in the fourth quarter. They emptied the bench and cruised to the victory to finish up an undefeated road trip, with all three wins by at least 11 points.
The Lakers also made a concerted effort to shut down the league’s leading rebounder Kevin Love, as he didn’t score in the game and grabbed just seven rebounds in 34 minutes of action. Love victimized the Lakers last time for 23 points and 24 rebounds, and recently had a 30/30 game against the New York Knicks. But on this night, he was completely taken out of the game by Lamar Odom.
Minnesota did have a couple of bright spots though. Darko Milicic scored 23 points, grabbed 16 rebounds, and had six blocks, in what was arguably the best game of his career. And Michael Beasley continues his resurgence up north, scoring 25 points and notching 10 rebounds.
The Lakers did get a scare when Shannon Brown was poked in the right eye early in the fourth quarter on a layup attempt. He stayed in the game to shoot free throws, but was having a hard time seeing out of the eye, and went to the locker room to be checked out. He did return to the game and played several minutes, as it appeared the injury was not that serious.
The Lakers also did a good job on the defensive end, holding the Wolves under 40% (39.6%) from the field, and just 6-26 (23.1%) from the 3-point line. They also had 10 steals and eight blocked shots.
The team returns home for a Sunday contest against Monta Ellis and the Golden St. Warriors at Staples Center. The Lakers beat the Warriors 107-83 back on Halloween night at Staples, as the team from the Bay Area played without guard Stephen Curry. This time they will be without All-Star forward David Lee, who is recovering from an infected elbow suffered in a game last week against the New York Knicks.
Lakers Breeze Past Struggling Pistons
11.17.10
Kobe Bryant scores two of his 33 against Pistons.
The Lakers made short work of the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday, leading by as many as 26 points in the second half, as they cruised to a 103-90 victory at the Palace of Auburn Hills.
Kobe Bryant took advantage of smaller defenders all night, scoring a game-high 33 points, with nine rebounds, and four assists in just under 32 minutes of action. Pau Gasol dominated the worst-rebounding team in the league in the paint, with 25 points and 12 rebounds, and Lamar Odom added 15 points and 14 boards. The Lakers outrebounded the Pistons 55-41.
In a microcosm of the Pistons’ season so far, guard Richard Hamilton was ejected with two technicals just five minutes into the game, after he picked up two early fouls guarding Kobe Bryant. Discipline and internal battles have been a recurring theme for Detroit, as they continue to unravel on the court.
The Lakers took advantage of the Pistons’ woes, jumping out to a 59-45 lead halftime. The lead ballooned to 78-52 late in the third quarter, as the NBA champs showed no mercy in piling up the points. The final score was not indicative of how one-sided the game really was, as the Pistons made it respectable against the end of the Lakers’ bench in the fourth quarter.
The Pistons were led by Rodney Stuckey’s 18 points. Tayshaun Prince had 13 points, and Austin Daye added 12. Nobody else on the squad tallied more than eight points.
The Lakers held the Pistons to a miserable 39.3% from the field, including 4-16 (25.0%) from the 3-point line. The only bright spots for the home team on the stat sheet were that they only committed just five turnovers, and held the league’s highest-scoring team to 103 points. The Lakers have now beaten the Pistons three straight times in Detroit, after dropping the previous six there.
The Lakers conclude their three-game road trip on Friday in Minnesota. The Lakers have already beaten the Timberwolves once this season in Los Angeles, but it was a struggle in a 99-94 win back on November 9.
Lakers Blow Lead, Fall in Denver
11.11.10
Ron Artest goes up for two against Nuggets.
The Lakers blew a 10-point fourth quarter lead, played sloppy down the stretch, and watched Carmelo Anthony pour in 32 points as the Nuggets knocked the Lakers from the ranks of the undefeated, 118-112 in Denver on Thursday night.
It was a game the Lakers were in control of most of the night, leading by as many as 14 midway through the third quarter. They held a 95-85 lead with just over 10 minutes left in the game when the Nuggets went on a 16-0 run to take a 101-98 lead. The Lakers took their last lead at 105-103 on a layup by Shannon Brown , but were thoroughly outplayed down the stretch, settling for too many 3-pointers, as the Nuggets pulled away late for an impressive come-from-behind win.
Kobe Bryant led all scorers with 34 points, but hit only 11-32 shots from the field. He missed several open jump shots down the stretch as well. Pau Gasol had 17 points and a season-high 20 rebounds, but was clearly frustrated by the Nuggets’ smaller lineup employed by coach George Karl for large parts of the game. Ron Artest had a solid game with 18 points.
The real bright spot for the Lakers was the play of Shannon Brown, who scored 19 points off the bench and made several big shots and plays in the fourth quarter to keep them close. But it wasn’t enough, as the Lakers fell to 8-1 on the season.
Carmelo Anthony led the Nuggets with 32 points (on 14-25 shooting) and 13 rebounds. His play was the difference down the stretch as he hit big basket after big basket to help get the win. Nene had 18 points.
But it was the play of the Nuggets’ bench that got the them the lead in the fourth. Ty Lawson got the to the rim at will, scoring 17 points with 5 assists, and J.R. Smith, who has struggled this year so far, found his range from beyond the arc and scored 13 points.
The Lakers will try to bounce back on Sunday as they take on Steve Nash and the Phoenix Suns at Staples Center on Sunday. The Lakers beat the Suns 114-106 in the second game of the season in Phoenix.
Lakers Sluggish in Win Against Raptors
11.05.10
Pau Gasol scores two of his 30 points against the Raptors.
When the Lakers look back on this season, Friday’s game against the Toronto Raptors won’t be remembered as one to save for a time capsule, just as a victory. The Lakers shook off a terrible defensive game, and beat a gritty Raptor team 108-103 at Staples Center, to move to 6-0 on the season.
When the Lakers jumped out to a 33-20 lead after one quarter, it looked like the game was headed for extended minutes of garbage time, and another short night for the starters. But the young Raptors, learning about life after Chris Bosh, responded to the adversity on the road and stormed back to take a 58-55 lead into halftime.
The game went back and forth in the third, before the Lakers finally got the lead for good late in the quarter. They held on down the stretch for the win despite some uncharacteristic, shaky play in the last minute.
The Raptors dominated inside and on the boards all night, getting to the basket at will against the bigger Lakers, and outrebounding the world champs 49-31. The Lakers appeared confused on defense all through the game, and had trouble boxing out, as the Raptors also had 19 offensive rebounds to keep them afloat after the Lakers’ early lead.
Pau Gasol had another impressive offensive game, scoring 30 points on 12-22 shooting. He grabbed only seven rebounds, and didn’t have a single board until midway through the third quarter. It was just that kind of night. Kobe Bryant scored 23 points with six assists, and Steve Blake had 14 points, making 4-6 from the 3-point line. Shannon Brown added 12 points off the bench.
The Raptors had six players in double figures, led by Leandro Barbosa off the bench with 17, and USC-product DeMar DeRozan with 15. Amir Johnson off the bench had 12 points, and a game and career-high 15 rebounds, including nine on the offensive end. Andrea Bargnani and Jose Calderon each added 14 points.
The Lakers did outshoot the Raptors from the field hitting 48.1% to 47.1%, and only turned the ball over 12 times. But those were the few statistical categories the Lakers did win, besides the most important stat, the final score. The Raptors scored 38 points in the second quarter to erase the Lakers early 13-point lead.
Luke Walton saw his first action of the year, playing a little over six minutes and taking just one shot. He had been bothered by a strained hamstring since training camp.
The Lakers look to stay undefeated when they face Brandon Roy and the Portland Trail Blazers at home on Sunday. The Blazers, who always give the Lakers a hard time, are off to a good start at 4-2, despite missing their top two centers Greg Oden, and Joel Przybilla, both still recovering from serious knee injuries last year.
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