David Brickley, and Kevin Figgers come to you after a triple over-time thriller at Staples against the Phoenix Suns, for another LIVE post-game edition of the Voice of the Nation.

Rundown

• Lakers beat Suns in Triple OT
• Was Andrew Bynum’s two game suspension warranted?
• Shootgate: What does Chris Bosh have to say about Kobe shooting after the Miami game?
• Should Lamar Odom be the Sixth Man of the Year?
• Ron Artest reacts to Kendrick Perkins’ “Laker Hater” Comments
• Around the NBA
• Khloe and Lamar’s UN-BREAKABLE is currently UN-AVAILABLE!
• Shaq interviews Shaq: Takes Jab at Kobe, and…
• Phil Jackson says there will be no 4-peat?
• and Much MUCH More

Additonal Audio

• AM570 KLAC
• TNT
• 790 The Ticket
• LA Times Blog

Download Link: Voice of the Nation – Episode #123
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Podcast Home: LakersPodcast.com

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.

Link: Lakers vs. Trail Blazers Box Score

Kobe Bryant goes up for two against Clippers.

The Lakers frustrated Blake Griffin, frustrated the Clippers, then watched it all come apart in the fourth quarter, and saw their 7-game winning streak go with it in a 99-92 loss to the Clippers at Staples Center on Sunday.

Kobe Bryant had 27 points, nine rebounds, and five assists, and took the game over in the third quarter as the Lakers built a 12-point lead at 67-55.  But after that run, it was all downhill for the champs, as the Clippers started making shots, and Griffin got physical inside.

In a tight game, the Lakers led 45-44 at halftime, with Griffin scoring just two points, as Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom made life hard on the Clippers’ star rookie.  After the Lakers led by double-digits late in the third quarter, the Clippers came alive led by the scoring of Eric Gordon and Griffin.

After a three-pointer by Ron Artest put the Lakers up 82-78 in the middle of the fourth quarter, the Clippers used a decisive 16-3 run to put the game away.  Then tempers got a little testy.  Griffin pushed Lamar Odom in the back going for a rebound with five seconds left, to which Odom was not too happy in a game that was clearly over.

The two got tangled up and went into a war of words with some pushing.  Artest and Baron Davis ran in and tried to be peacemakers in the altercation.  No punches were thrown, but all four players were ejected, with Artest’s ejection seeming quite ridiculous.

Andrew Bynum had 18 points and 13 rebonds for the Lakers, and Pau Gasol added 13 points and eight boards, but had a very tough time with the physical Griffin in the second half, and eventually fouled out of a forgettable ending for the Lakers.

Griffin, after a terrible first half, finished with 18 points and 15 rebounds, but shot just 7-20 from the floor.  His string of 14-straight games with over 20 points was also snapped.  Gordon had a game-high 30 points, hitting 13-20 from the field and 4-7 from beyond the arc.  Davis was the only other Clipper in double-figures with 14 points.

The Lakers shot miserably from the field, at 41.3% (31-75), and an even worse 3-20 (15.0%) from the three-point line.  They did get to the foul line 33 times, hitting 27, which helped offset the poor shooting from the floor.   The also lost the rebound battle 50-45.

The Clippers didn’t shoot much better at 43.7% (38-87) from the field, but they hit 9-21 (42.9%) from long range and had 15 offensive rebounds.

The loss dropped the Lakers to 30-12 on the season, and 14-7 on the road.

The Lakers’ next game is Monday against Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder at Staples Center.  The Thunder come in with the third-best record in the Western Conference and have won four straight.  It will be the team’s first meeting since the Lakers beat the Oklahoma City 4-2 in a memorable first round match-up in last year’s playoffs.

Link: Lakers @ Clippers Box Score

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“The Numerology of Ron Artest”.

Enjoy!

It didn’t start out as a thing of beauty though, as the Lakers struggled through most of the first half. They trailed by as many as 16 early in the second quarter before the second unit made a run, keyed by Trevor Ariza and Jordan Farmar, who scored 16 off the bench.

The Lakers finally took the lead near the end of the half and led 50-48 at the break. Kobe Bryant took over early in the second half, and wound up finishing with 23 points, and two spectacular blocks on Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady. Pau Gasol had his best game of the season, scoring 20 points, grabbing 15 rebounds, and blocking three shots.

The Rockets’ “Big 3″ of Tracy McGrady, Yao Ming, and Ron Artest managed only 23 points combined, and shot a putrid 9-33 (27.2%) from the field. McGrady made only 1-11 shots from the floor, a 3-pointer early in the first half. The highlight of the night for the Rockets were the 20 points off the bench from second year guard Aaron Brooks, who hit 8-15 shots, including 3-6 from the arc.

The Lakers now go out on a tough two-game trip this week, playing at Dallas on Tuesday, and then in New Orleans Wednesday as part of a back-to-back. They return home on Friday to host to the Detroit Pistons and their newly-acquired superstar Allen Iverson.

This is the Lakers first 5-0 start since 2003-04.