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Brett
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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.
Kobe Has Triple-Double as Lakers Down Kings
11.03.10
Kobe Bryant had 17th career triple-double against Kings.
Kobe Bryant has always made it a habit of playing well against the Sacramento Kings during his career. He didn’t disappoint Wednesday, collecting his 17th career triple-double as the Lakers beat the Kings 112-100 at Arco Arena.
Bryant came out focused from the start, aggressive on the offensive and defensive ends. He forced Tyreke Evans into early foul trouble, and was able to take advantage of smaller defenders as he picked the Kings’ defense apart for 30 points, 12 assists, and 10 rebounds. It was Bryant’s first triple-double since January 21, 2009 against the Clippers.
Pau Gasol had another good night with 22 points, 11 rebounds, and two blocks, taking advantage of rookie DeMarcus Cousins in the post all night, and forcing him into five fouls. Lamar Odom continued to play inspired ball to the start the season, scoring 18 points on 8-12 from the field, with eight rebounds. He also shook off jamming the thumb on his shooting hand in the third quarter. Ron Artest had his best game of the new season, scoring 17 points on 7-11 from the floor, and 3-4 from beyond the arc.
The Lakers led 62-53 at halftime, and pushed the lead to 20 midway through the third at 82-62. The Kings rallied and got as close as 98-92 halfway through the fourth, before Derek Fisher scored seven straight points to put the Lakers comfortably ahead for good 105-92. Fisher finished the night with 11 points.
It was a well-played, hard-fought game throughout as the teams combined for only 14 turnovers. The Lakers had turned the ball over 39 times their previous two games, but only had 6 giveaways against the Kings. The Lakers again were strong from the 3-point line, hitting 11-21 (52.4%).
Tyreke Evans led the Kings with 21 points, despite being in foul trouble, shooting 10-17 from the floor. Carl Landry and Beno Udrih had 17 points, and Francisco Garcia also poured in 17 off the bench for the Kings, who had gotten off to a surprising 3-1 start.
The Lakers have started the season 5-0 for the seventh time in franchise history. Their next game is Friday night at home against the Toronto Raptors, who were pasted in Utah on Wednesday 125-108.
Link: Lakers @ Kings Box Score
Lakers Run Over Grizzlies 124-105
11.02.10
Pau Gasol dunks over Hasheem Thabeet of Memphis.
It was another short night for the starters, as the Lakers dominated from start to finish, and dispatched the Memphis Grizzlies 124-105 at Staples Center on Tuesday night.
For the second straight game, the Lakers bench saw extensive action as the contest was blowout by early in the second quarter. Kobe Bryant scored all of his team-high 23 points in the first half, and played just 25 minutes.
In the battle of the Gasol brothers, Pau, coming off his Western Conference Player-of-the-Week award, easily won this match-up scoring 21 points, grabbing 13 rebounds, and dishing out five assists. Marc managed 11 points and eight rebounds, but was a non-factor most of the night as the game got out of hand early.
The Lakers led 34-23 after one, and turned up the offense in the second quarter, led by Bryant’s 14 points in the period, to take a 73-46 lead into halftime. The Grizzlies never got closer than 14 points in the second half, and the Laker reserves maintained the cushion throughout, even briefly pushing the lead up to 32. Matt Barnes led three Lakers in double-figures off the bench with 16 points and 14 rebounds. Shannon Brown scored 13, including 3-3 from the 3-point line, and Steve Blake added 10. The Lakers’ bench outscored the Grizzlies’ 50-30.
Lamar Odom scored 17 on 6-7 shooting, including eight rebounds, six assists, and a steal. Odom is averaging over 16 points and 12 rebounds to start the season.
Memphis was led by Rudy Gay’s 30 points, 12-18 from the field, and 3-3 from behind the arc. Mike Conley had 16 points and eight assists after signing a 5-year/$45 million extension earlier in the day. O.J. Mayo struggled from the floor scoring only eight points, on 3-11 shooting. He also had his troubles with Bryant on the offensive end, which has been a familiar story for the third-year pro when he has played against the Lakers.
All-Star forward Zach Randolph again sat out for the Grizzlies with a sore back injured on opening night. Memphis definitely missed his presence offensively and on the glass, as they were outrebounded 59-36.
The Lakers shot 51.2% from the field, and 14-23 (60.9%) from the 3-point line for the game, but again turned the ball over far too many times with 19. They had 20 turnovers two nights earlier in a blowout win against Golden St.
The Lakers play their first back-to-back games of the season as they take on the Sacramento Kings in Sacramento tomorrow night. The Kings are playing well at 3-1, and are coming off a win over Toronto, where they rallied from a 17-point first quarter deficit on Monday at home.
Lakers Pound Warriors to Stay Perfect
11.01.10
Kobe Bryant scores two of his 20 points against Warriors.
It’s not even November yet, so it’s hard to make much of a 3-0 record, but the Lakers have started the season playing solid basketball, as they pounded the Golden St. Warriors 107-83 at Staples Center on Sunday night.
The game, played on Halloween night, must have felt like a nightmare for the Warriors who continue to struggle against the Lakers, losing 10 straight regular season contests. The world champs dominated inside all night as they outrebounded the Warriors 55-42, and held the boys from the Bay Area to under 41% shooting from the field. The Lakers led 34-14 after one quarter, and the Warriors never recovered, trailing by as much as 32 in the fourth.
Pau Gasol continued his strong start to the season with another double-double, leading everyone with 26 and 12 rebounds in under 35 minutes. Kobe Bryant, who told reporters after the game that his knee was 100%, scored 20 points and grabbed seven boards, and got most of the night off in the blowout. He played just 27 minutes. Lamar Odom had another big game with 16 points and 14 rebounds, and Derek Fisher had a season-high 14 points.
Golden St.’s big offseason acquisition David Lee, was held scoreless in 19 minutes and grabbed just three rebounds, as the Lakers made it a point to keep him off the glass. Monta Ellis led the visitors with 20 points, but struggled to find his rhythm as he was swarmed on defense all night. Dorell Wright had a solid game with 18 points and five rebounds. The Warriors played without guard Stephen Curry who is nursing a sore ankle.
The only real negative to the evening were the 20 turnovers the Lakers committed, which Phil Jackson saw as an area of concern that will need to be addressed.
The Lakers even found minutes for their two rookies, with both Devin Ebanks and Derrick Caracter scoring the first four points of their NBA careers during “garbage time” in the fourth quarter.
The Lakers’ next game will be Tuesday night at home against the Memphis Grizzlies, who have been without forward Zach Randolph since he took a hard fall and injured his back on opening night.
Lakers Take Care of Business in Phoenix
10.30.10
Lamar Odom drives to basket against Suns.
The Lakers returned to Phoenix for the first time since dispatching the Suns in the Western Conference Finals last May, and took a win back to Los Angeles 114-106, behind a strong game from Lamar Odom.
Odom, starting in place of the injured Andrew Bynum, scored 18 points and dominated the glass with 17 rebounds. He also had five assists and hit 8-12 from the field. All the throughout the game, it was obvious how much the lack of size hurt the Suns on the boards, especially with the loss of Amare Stoudemire who is now playing in New York. The Lakers were able to take advantage of the size mismatches all night, and the sharp-shooting Suns managed to hit only 9-24 from the 3-point line.
Kobe Bryant had a solid game with 25 points on 9-19 from the field. He also added seven rebounds and needed to play only 34 minutes, getting more rest for his surgically-repaired knee which is still not 100% yet. Pau Gasol had 21 points, eight assists, nine rebounds, and two blocks, Ron Artest added 14 points and three steals, and Matt Barnes chipped in with 11 points off the bench, including 3-4 from behind the arc.
The Suns were led by Grant Hill’s 21 points, and Robin Lopez had a solid 18 points and 14 rebounds. Steve Nash struggled all night, hitting only 3-9 from the field, for eight points in 29 minutes. He did have nine assists. Goran Dragic had 15 points off the bench to go with four assists.
The game was tight early as the Suns gave a valiant effort to keep it close, and trailed only 57-50 at halftime. The Lakers stretched the the lead from 8-10 points several times in the second half, but never could put away the Suns, who managed to tie the game at 76 late in the third quarter. The Lakers pulled away early in the fourth quarter and the Suns never were never able to get to any closer than six points down the stretch.
The win moved the Lakers to 2-0 on the new season, the Suns fell to 1-2, losing their home opener after winning handily in Utah last night. The Lakers next game is Halloween night on Sunday against Golden St. at Staples Center. Golden St. may be without star second-year guard Stephen Curry, as he left the game on Friday against the Clippers after re-aggravating an ankle injury.
Link: Lakers @ Suns Box Score
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