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Lakers Bench Leads Victory Against Bulls
11.24.10
Kobe Bryant goes up for shot against Bulls.
Shannon Brown says he always wants to play well against the city he grew up in, Chicago. On Tuesday night, he did just that, scoring 21 points off the bench, leading the Lakers to a tough 98-91 win over the Chicago Bulls at Staples Center.
In a game that was close throughout, Brown provided the spark off the bench, scoring 15 of his team-high 21 points in the second quarter, leaving the Lakers clinging to a 51-49 lead at the break.
Lamar Odom had a strong game, scoring 21 points and grabbing eight rebounds, and Kobe Bryant added 20 and a team-high five assists as the Lakers won their fifth straight. Pau Gasol had a tough time, but did have a double-double with 12 points, 11 rebounds, and five blocked shots.
The Bulls were led by All-Star guard Derrick Rose, who tormented Laker guards all night, getting to the rim seemingly at well en route to a game-high 30 points, to go along with eight assists, and five rebounds. Joakim Noah made life difficult under the rim for Pau Gasol all game long, scoring 19 points and grabbing 16 rebounds. Former USC star Taj Gibson added 16 points and 12 rebounds.
With the Lakers falling behind 75-74 early in the fourth quarter, it was the bench that took over the game, not the starters. Shannon Brown, Matt Barnes, and Steve Blake all hit three pointers (Blake hit two) during a stretch where the Lakers turned a one-point deficit into a 12-point lead at 95-83. The Bulls got as close as six with two minutes left, but Pau Gasol’s tip-in off a Bryant miss with a little over a minute to go sealed the game for the Lakers, and pushed their record to 13-2.
For the game, the Lakers’ bench outscored the Bulls’ bench 39-10, highlighted by Brown’s 21 points. Matt Barnes added 10 points, five rebounds, three assists, and a blocked shot.
The Lakers’ defense continues to get back to form, holding the Bulls to 39.5% from the field and 4-20 (20%) from the 3-point line. The Lakers have held their last four opponents under 100 points, and have been dominate on the defensive end since the second half of the game in Milwaukee last Tuesday. It was also only the second time in 15 games they did not score 100 points.
The Lakers’ next game is Friday night in Utah, as they face the new-look Jazz for the first time this season. The Jazz recently came off a very impressive road trip that included several huge come-from-behind wins, highlighted by back-to-back victories in Miami and Orlando.
Lakers Bounce Back, Topple the Bucks
11.16.10
Matt Barnes throws it down against Bucks.
The Lakers made sure their losing streak ended at two, as they came back strong in the second half and defeated the Milwaukee Bucks 118-107 at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee on Tuesday night.
Kobe Bryant scored 31 points, grabbed seven rebounds, and had three assists in a solid all-around performance. But it was really the play of Shannon Brown off the bench that propelled the Lakers to victory. Brown scored 16 of his 21 points in the decisive fourth quarter, including 4-5 from behind the 3-point line, helping the Lakers erase a 59-57 halftime deficit.
Pau Gasol had 18 points and 10 rebounds, and Lamar Odom added 13 points and 7 boards, as the Lakers rebounded from Sunday night’s shocking loss at home to the Suns at home where they allowed 22 3-pointers. On this night, they held the Bucks to 46.1% from the field, and just 9-24 from beyond the arc (37.5%).
The Bucks were hot early though, hitting 8-13 from the 3-point line, and taking a back-and-forth battle to the locker room with a lead. The Lakers turned up the defense in the second half, holding the Bucks to 22 points in the third quarter and taking a 90-81 lead into the final period. They Bucks never got closer than seven after that.
The Lakers shot the ball well in all facets on Tuesday, hitting 53.8% from the field, 82.8% from the foul line, and a season-high 10-16 (62.5%) from the 3-point line.
Los Angeles-born Brandon Jennings led the home team with 31 points and 6 assists. Drew Gooden had a superb game with 22 points and 13 rebounds, and Andrew Bogut, still struggling with his shooting elbow, scored 12, and grabbed 18 rebounds (9 offensive), but hit just 2-10 from the free throw line.
The Lakers play the second game on this three-game trip tomorrow night in Detroit against the struggling Pistons at the Palace of Auburn Hills. The Lakers have beaten the Pistons the last two years at the Palace, after dropping six straight there.
Link: Lakers @ Bucks Box Score
Laker Win Eighth Straight, Rout Mavs 114-103
12.04.03
In a game that wasn’t nearly as close as the final score, the Lakers continued their domination over the Mavericks, as they cruised to their eighth straight win, 114-103 in Dallas on Thursday night.
For the second straight night, Shaquille O’Neal was a monster on the defensive end. He controlled the defensive glass, blocked shots, and forced the Mavs into several ill-advised shots. He finished the game with 25 points, 19 rebounds, five assists, and three blocked shots.
The Lakers took the lead from opening tip, and getting up by as much 27-11 in the first quarter. They led the game 51-42 at halftime, and Dallas never really seriously challenged the rest of the way.
The Mavs struggled from the floor all game, as the Lakers’ defense held the high-scoring team to 37.4% shooting (37-of-99) from the field. The Lakers shot 44.2% (38-of-86) from the floor and made 31-of-40 (77.5%) from the charity stripe.
Kobe Bryant led all scorers with 32 points. Gary Payton scored 17 and dished out eight assists, and Karl Malone added 11 points, nine rebounds, and six assists.
Steve Nash led Dallas with 30 points and eight assists, and was the recipient of two stitches after being hit in the mouth with a Malone elbow in the third quarter. The Mavs played without leading scorer Dirk Nowitski, who has an inured ankle.
The Lakers have now beaten the Mavericks 46 of the last 51 times the two teams have met. The Lakers current eight-game winning streak is their longest in two seasons.
The Lakers next game is Sunday night at Staples Center against the Utah Jazz.
Link: LakerStats.com Box Score
Link: NBA.com Recap
Lakers Defense A Problem, Lose to the Grizz 105-95
11.10.03
If the Los Angeles Lakers don’t start to play some defense, there is no possible way they will regain the NBA title come June. Monday night’s game in Memphis was another shining example of what is turning into a major achilles heel for the team.
The Grizzlies dominated the game after the 1st quarter, stretching their lead to 16 after three quarters, and the Lakers got no closer than seven after that.
Memphis shot over 50% from the floor for most of the game, before a 4th quarter slide dropped them to a still respectable 49%. The Lakers again tried to rally with a furious 4th quarter comeback, but simply could net get enough defensive stops to get back in the game.
Shaquille O’Neal led the Lakers with 20 points and 12 rebounds, but only managed to take 14 shots in 41 minutes. Kobe Bryant again struggled for most of the game, hitting only 5-of-15 shots, although he did finish with 19 points, but six turnovers.
Gary Payton, nursing a sore ankle he sprained in practice on Sunday, played only 27 minutes, scoring six points on 3-of-6 from the field. The Lakers bench continues to do nothing aside from Derek Fisher who scored 9 points.
Devean George was one of the few Laker bright spots. He scored 17 points, made 6-of-7 shots, including 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. The Lakers only shot 44% from the field for the game.
The Grizzlies were led by Pau Gasol who scored 22 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Memphis’ defense played well all night as, they forced the Lakers into 23 turnovers, including a stunning 17 steals.
The Lakers return home for three games starting Wednesday against Toronto at Staples Center. The Lakers finished their road trip with a 2-2 record, and are now riding a two-game losing streak after winning their first five games to start the season.
Bottom line, the Lakers need to play better defense and stop turning the ball over if they expect to win games, especially on the road.
Link: LakerStats.com Box Score
Link: NBA.com Recap
Lakers Run Out of Gas in “Big Easy”
11.07.03
Fresh off their double-overtime marathon on Thursday in San Antonio, the Lakers had little left in the tank for their Friday night battle in New Orleans, and suffered their first loss of the season, 114-95.
The Lakers were a visibly tired basketball team the whole night. They found themselves down seven after one quarter, and 17 by the end of the third quarter. The Hornets were red hot all night, shooting a fantastic 57% from the field, and 52% (12-of-23) from beyond the arc as they moved to 5-1 on the season.
Kobe Bryant struggled all night. He managed to hit only 4-of-14 shots, scoring just 11 points in 37 minutes. Shaquille O’Neal was the team’s high-scorer, tallying 21 points, and six rebounds.
The Lakers’ “Fantastic Four” never could get their games in synch. Karl Malone played only 28 minutes, took only seven shots, and scored just 10 points. Gary Payton had similar struggles, scoring only seven points on 3-of-10 shooting. He did hand out a team-high 11 assists however.
For the game, the Lakers shot only 46% from the field and a miserable 30% (6-for-20) from the 3-point line. They were also out-rebounded 36 to 32.
The Hornets were led by Baron Davis, who had a stellar night, scoring 23 points, and dishing out 12 assists. He also hit 4-of-9 from beyond the arc.
The Lakers will welcome two days off, as they prepare for their final game on this road trip, Monday night in Memphis against Jerry West‘s Grizzlies.
Link: LakerStats.com Box Score
Link: NBA.com Recap
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