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Lakers Top Hornets for Seventh Straight Win
03.27.11
Kobe Bryant drives hard to the basket against Hornets.
The Lakers just keep rolling right along towards the playoffs, as they took care of the New Orleans Hornets 102-84 at Staples Center on Sunday night.
Kobe Bryant, who scored 79 points in his previous two games, poured in a game-high 30 points to go along with five assists, as the Lakers won their seventh straight game, and have gone 15-1 since the All-Star break.
Los Angeles jumped on the David West-less Hornets early, and led 30-19 after the first quarter. After getting up by as many as 18 points in the first half, the Lakers settled for a halftime lead of 57-41.
The Hornets played much better in the second half, and were able to rally back behind the inspired play of Carl Landry, who is starting in place of West. New Orleans got to within six points in the fourth quarter at 78-72, before the Lakers went on a 24-12 run to close the game, and win going away by 18.
Pau Gasol had a big night with 23 points, 16 rebounds, and four blocked shots. Andrew Bynum battled foul trouble all game long, and played just over 21 minutes, but he did have 13 points and five boards in his limited action. Ron Artest was the only other Laker in double figures with 11 points on 4-6 shooting from the field.
For the game, the Lakers shot 41-85 (48.2%) from the field, 17-21 (81.0%) from the foul line, but only 3-17 (17.6%) from beyond the arc, with Bryant hitting just 1-6 from deep. The Lakers won the rebound battle 44-43 and committed just nine turnovers.
New Orleans struggled shooting the ball all night, finishing at 40.2% on 35-87 from the floor. They were also a miserable 3-17 (17.6%) from the three-point line, with Marco Belinelli convering just 1-7 from long range.
Landry led the Hornets with 24 points and 10 rebounds playing almost 44 minutes. Emeka Okafor had 14 points and 11 rebounds, and Chris Paul had an off night scoring just 10 points on 4-9 shooting, but he did have nine assists. No other Hornet scored in double figures.
The win put the Lakers’ record at 53-20, and they are one game ahead of the Dallas Mavericks for second place in the Western Conference. The two teams will get together on Thursday night for a battle at Staples Center. San Antonio dropped their third straight and are now 57-16, just four games ahead of the Lakers for the conference lead with nine games remaining.
The champs will get three days off before they take on Dallas, and will try to complete a 7-0 homestand. Sometimes long layoffs can be a bad thing for a team playing well, but the Lakers know they have to be at their best in what will surely be a playoff-like atmosphere on Thursday. The Mavericks and Lakers have split their first two games this season, with the Lakers beating the Mavericks 96-91 in their last meeting in Dallas.
Box Score: Lakers vs. Hornets Box Score
Kobe Closes Out The Warriors as Lakers Win
01.13.11
Kobe Bryant drives towards basket against Warriors.
Kobe Bryant has the reputation of being the game’s best closer. On Wednesday night he didn’t disappoint, taking over the game in the final six minutes, and rallying the Lakers past the pesky Golden St. Warriors 115-110 at Oracle Arena.
Bryant scored 17 of his game-high 39 points in the final 5:49, as the Lakers overcame an early 14-point deficit. He also had a crucial assist on a Ron Artest three-pointer with under two minutes left, that gave the Lakers a five point cushion. Bryant grabbed six rebounds, dished out four assists, and hit 13-21 from the field.
But it wasn’t just the heroics of #24 that saved the Lakers on this night. Lamar Odom came off the bench to score 20 points, to go along with nine rebounds, and single-handedly kept the world champs in the game early in the fourth quarter, before Bryant came in and closed it out.
Pau Gasol had another solid game with 24 points and 11 rebounds, and Andrew Bynum scored 11 points to go along with a game-high 14 rebounds.
The Warriors led most of the game. They jumped out to a 37-23 lead in the second quarter, behind the sizzling shooing of Monta Ellis, who scored 21 of his 38 points in the first half. After the Lakers went ahead briefly at 43-42, the Warriors went on an 11-2 run to close the half and take a 53-45 to the break.
In the third quarter quarter, the Warriors kept the pressure on the Lakers, keeping the lead between 6-8 points most the quarter. Ellis hit a buzzer-beating jumper that gave Golden St. a 75-69 lead after three.
The fourth quarter turned into a duel between Ellis and Bryant, with the reigning 2-time NBA Finals MVP finally getting the better of his shooting guard counterpart down the stretch, hitting big shot after big shot, including a dagger three-pointer to put the Lakers up 105-99 with just over 30 seconds left. The Warriors hit several threes down the stretch, but the Lakers made all the foul shots for the win.
Ellis for the game hit 15-26 from the field, and 4-5 from three-point line, playing all 48 minutes of the game. Dorell Wright also played the entire game, scoring 27 points to go along with seven rebounds, four assists, three steals, and two blocked shots. Stephen Curry had 15 points and 10 assists.
Both teams shot the ball well, the Lakers hit 51.2% (42-82) from the field and 26-29 (89.7%) from the foul line. The Warriors shot 50.6% (44-87) from the field and a ridiculous 13-30 (43.3%) from beyond the arc. Los Angeles dominated on the glass 47-27, including 18 at the offensive end, which gave them a lot of second-chance opportunities, offsetting the massive three-point differential.
And after turning the ball over frequently in the first half leading to 20 fastbreak points for the Warriors, the Lakers finished the game with a respectable 14 turnovers.
The Lakers have now won six straight games, and are sitting in second place in the Western Conference, 4.5 games behind the San Antonio Spurs. They’re now 14-6 on the road, and have won eight of their last nine away from Staples Center.
The champs next face the slumping New Jersey Nets on Friday night at Staples Center. The Lakers won the first meeting in New Jersey 99-92 back in early December, a game that was a lot closer than it should have been. Former Lakers Jordan Farmar and Sasha Vujacic will make their first appearances at Staples Center in uniforms other than purple and gold. Farmar will also receive is 2009-10 NBA Championship ring.
Kobe Moves Up Scoring List, Lakers Beat Hornets
01.08.11
Kobe Bryant takes shot against Hornets.
Kobe Bryant moved up to 9th place on the NBA’s scoring list, passing Oscar Robertson, as the Lakers made enough plays down the stretch to hold off the New Orleans Hornets 101-97 on Friday at Staples Center.
Bryant scored a game-high 25 points, putting him at 26,720 for his career. He surpassed the Big O’s mark of 27,210 with a short jumper inside the paint with just over one minute left in third quarter. He already passed Dominique Wilkins to put himself inside the top 10 earlier in the week against the Detroit Pistons.
The game was close all night, as the Lakers had a 10-point lead momentarily in the fourth quarter, but never had a double-digit otherwise. They led at halftime 51-46, but the Hornets came out strong defensively early in the third quarter, and took a brief 62-61 lead with about four minutes left in the period.
The Lakers responded and got the lead back up to seven at 80-73 to start the fourth quarter. After Lamar Odom hit a three-pointer to make it 87-77 with just under eight minutes left, the Hornets responded with six straight points, but could never get closer than three. Bryant then hit two baskets in the final two minutes, and the Lakers were able to make enough free throws down the stretch for the win.
Pau Gasol rebounded from a sub-par game in Phoenix on Wednesday, to score 21 points, grab 13 rebounds, and dish out seven assists, hitting 6-8 from the floor. Lamar Odom, playing with a sore left shoulder, didn’t appear to be bothered by the injury, scoring 17 points, to go along with 13 rebounds. Andrew Bynum chipped in with 17 points, five rebounds, and three blocked shots, as the Lakers dominated the scoring in the paint.
The Lakers, who shot over 60% in the first half from the field, finished the game at 50.6% (39-77), and 5-12 from beyond the arc. They also limited their turnovers, which has plagued them recently. On Friday, they had just 11 to the Hornets’ 12. The Lakers held New Orleans to 43.4% (33-76) shooting from the floor, although the Hornets did hit 8-19 from the three point line.
Everything wasn’t all rosy though for the world champs, as Matt Barnes sprained his knee early in the first half. And while he did score a basket and continue to play a little longer, he did eventually leave the game, and an MRI is scheduled tomorrow to assess the severity of the injury.
Also, early in the fourth quarter, Steve Blake turned an ankle when he landed on Andrew Bynum’s foot. Blake left the court, had his ankle wrapped, and did return to the bench in uniform.
The Hornets were led by David West’s 23 points and 12 rebounds. Trevor Ariza and Marco Belinelli both scored 17 points, and Emeka Okafor had 13 points and 13 rebounds. Chris Paul took just six shots, scoring 12 points, but he did have a game-high 10 assists.
The Lakers’ next game is against Amar’e Stoudemire and the much-improved New York Knicks at Staples Center on Sunday. This will be the first meeting between the new-look Knicks and the Lakers this season. The Knicks knocked off Stoudemire’s old team, the Phoenix Suns, on Friday easily 121-96.
Lamar Odom Leads Lakers Past Sixers
12.17.10
Lamar Odom drives to basket for two against Sixers.
On a night when Kobe Bryant scored a season-low nine points, Lamar Odom picked up the slack and scored 28, as the Lakers pulled away from the Philadelphia 76ers in the fourth quarter, and won 93-81 at the Wells Fargo Center on Friday.
In a game devoid of artistic merit, the Lakers put together 12 great minutes of basketball in the fourth quarter, and turned a 62-58 deficit into a 12-point win, led by the play of Odom and reserve forward Matt Barnes.
Odom hit back-to-back three-point plays early in the fourth quarter to give the Lakers a 66-64 lead with a little over nine minutes left. Barnes, who scored 15 points to go along with 10 rebounds off the bench, kept the rally going with solid defense and timely shooting. His three-pointer with just over seven minutes left was part of a 27-8 Lakers’ run in the quarter, and put them ahead 71-64 as they never looked back.
Bryant, a day after having the gym at his alma mater Lower Merion High School renamed in his honor, had trouble getting into a rhythm all night. He scored just nine points on 3-11 shooting, and shockingly was never really a factor in the game. On this night, however, it didn’t matter, as the Lakers’ frontcourt just dominated the game.
Pau Gasol scored 19 points and grabbed 13 rebounds. Nobody else on the Lakers had more than eight points.
The game was very choppy for three quarters, and neither team shot the ball well, especially from the three point line. The Lakers shot a miserable 3-15 (20.0%) from beyond the arc, and the 76ers were an even more-inept 3-21 (14.3%) from long range. The Lakers have now held their opponents to under 90 points in five of their last eight games, and haven’t given up more than 94 points in their last six.
The 76ers were led by Spencer Hawes and Andre Iguodala, who both scored 18 points. Hawes also added 13 rebounds. No other Sixer scored in double-figures, and the team shot just 37.5% from the floor for the game. Despite that however, they led 62-58 after three quarters, before it came apart in the final stanza.
The Lakers have now won four straight, seven out of eight, and are 5-1 on this current road trip that finishes up Sunday in Toronto. The Lakers beat the Raptors 108-103 at Staples Center on November 5, in a game that was tight throughout. Pau Gasol scored 30 points that night, Kobe Bryant added 23.
Link: Lakers @ 76ers Box Score
LAKER ROSTER: The Rookies
09.14.10
As rookies, Devin Ebanks and Derrick Caracter can count on spending a lot of time at the end of the bench during the regular season, if they’re not shipped off to the Developmental League. In either case, you can view the presence of the rookies as addition by subtraction, as they won’t have to do much of anything to match the output of Josh Powell and Adam Morrison. Plus the combined salaries are considerably lower. And they are young. Ebanks, a 6’9″ 215 lb small forward from West Virginia, is only 20. Caracter, a 6’9″ 265 lb power forward from Texas-El Paso, is 22. As second round draft picks, no one should suffer from super high expectations here. I would only expect to see them playing in the preseason and games that are routs (one way or the other). My hope is that they work hard in practice, learn the offense, and realize that their role, coming off the bench, is to preserve and build on any lead that the starters create. Last season It seemed to me the bench was keen on jacking up long distance shots when they didn’t turn the ball over, and letting the opposition drive to the basket without offering much resistance. In short, perfo
rming poorly both offensively and defensively.
Ebanks has been compared to Trevor Ariza, and if he’s as good defensively, that works for me. The Lakers are a little thin at the power forward position, so I believe Caracter will have more opportunities for playing time. There have been some comparisons to Shaq, as far as commitment to conditioning anyway. His contract has incentives for him not to balloon up in weight.
The Lakers are one of the more veteran teams, so I like having a little youth as well. Management was sufficiently impressed with their potential to sign them to contracts, so here’s hoping they contribute in some fashion to the Three-peat.
It’s a long season, so having players that the coach has enough faith in to play during the season, thereby allowing the starters to rest, is critically important.
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