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LeBron and AD Selected First Team All-NBA!
09.17.20
The accolades continue before the Western Conference Finals start!
Posted by LakerStats.com on Wednesday, September 16, 2020
Fisher’s Buzzer-Beater Gets Lakers By Clippers
12.09.10
Derek Fisher hits the game-winner against Clippers.
Normally when Derek Fisher hits a game-winning shot, it’s a jump shot. On Wednesday night he tried something a little different, as he banked in a layup at the buzzer, to lead the Lakers to a wild 87-86 win over the Clippers at Staples Center.
The game seemed to played in mud all night, as neither team had much of an offensive flow. After an early lead, the Lakers found themselves down the rest of the night, never really did find their rhythm, but were able to make enough plays down the stretch to pull out what was seemed to be a loss to their hallway rivals.
Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 24 points, and while he only scored four points in the fourth quarter, his two baskets in the final two minutes of the game, set up the dramatic finish.
With the Clippers leading 84-83 after a Bryant basket, Ron Artest knocked away a pass for a steal, and Bryant then drilled an 18-foot jumper to put the Lakers up 85-84 with 22.8 seconds left.
After a timeout, the Clippers’ Eric Gordon, who scored 24 points himself, spun down the lane and found DeAndre Jordan for dunk, and an 86-85 lead with 15.5 seconds left. Not calling a timeout, the Lakers brought the ball down and Bryant was fouled by Gordon before he could get up a shot with 3.1 seconds left. The Clippers had a foul to give, although Gordon didn’t appear to commit the foul intentionally.
After a Laker timeout, Fisher took the inbound pass above the top of the three-point line, and drove the left side of the lane to the basket against Eric Bledsoe, and floated in the running layup at the buzzer over the outstretched fingers of DeAndre Jordan, who nearly blocked the shot, for the exciting 87-86 win.
Fisher only hit three baskets in the game, but the last one mattered the most.
Shannon Brown had a big night off the bench for the Lakers, scoring 16 points, and single-handedly keeping the Lakers in the game in the third quarter after they had fallen down by 12 points, including a 50-foot heave at the buzzer to bring the Lakers to 71-65 after three.
Lamar Odom, plagued by foul trouble, scored just 8 points and eventually fouled out of the game. Pau Gasol also continues to struggle, scoring just 10 points on 4-13 from the field, although he did grab 11 rebounds.
Clippers’ rookie star Blake Griffin, who also was in foul trouble early and struggled to find his game in the first half, wound up with 16 points and 11 rebounds in the loss. Eric Bledsoe added 11 points and seven assists, and DeAndre Jordan scored nine points, and grabbed 11 rebounds.
The Lakers were once again were outrebounded, 52-39, and shot a miserable 42.5% from the field. The Clippers were their own worst enemy down the stretch, turning the ball over on two straight possessions to allow the Lakers the chance to get close in the final two minutes. Ron Artest had four steals for Lakers.
While most thought the game wouldn’t be close, the Clippers were not intimidated by the world champs, and weathered an early 20-12 Lakers lead to take a 43-41 lead into the break. They led by 68-56 late in third before the Lakers mounted a charge to get back into the game. The lead changed hands three times in the final 22 seconds of the game.
The Lakers next game is on Friday in Chicago against the Bulls, who now have Carlos Boozer back in the lineup. Boozer didn’t play in the first meeting between the two teams, an 98-91 win by the Lakers back on November 23. The Lakers are hoping to have Andrew Bynum back on Tuesday when they play the Washington Wizards in the nation’s capital.
Another Laker Debacle in Houston
12.02.10
Lamar Odom drives past Shane Battier.
The streak continues…now it’s at four. And it’s not the kind of streak the Lakers were hoping for, it’s a streak of losing. The team’s problems continued Wednesday night in Houston, as the Rockets rallied in the fourth quarter, and beat the Lakers 109-99 at the Toyota Center
The Lakers haven’t lost this many games in a row since April of 2007, when they were a team barely scraping to make the playoffs, not the two-time defending NBA champions. But that’s the reality of the situation right now and certainly nobody in the league is going to feel sorry for them.
Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 27 points, to go along with four rebounds, four assists, and four steals. But really Lamar Odom had the best night for the Lakers, scoring 25 points on 11-16 from the floor, and grabbing 11 rebounds.
In what has been a familiar theme for the Lakers during this stretch, their defense let them down again when they needed it most. Leading by nine midway through the final quarter 89-80, the Rockets got hot from the three-point line, led by Shane Battier who was the hero late.
Battier scored 11 points in the final 2:30 of the game, including two three-pointers that put the Rockets up 105-99 with under a minute left. Bryant attempted to get the Lakers back in the game with some desperation three-pointers but was unable to connect, and the Rockets made foul shots down the stretch for the win.
Kevin Martin led the Rockets with 22 points, Battier scored 17, including 4-6 from beyond the arc. Luis Scola added 14 points, and 9 rebounds.
Pau Gasol, who again looked tired from all the heavy minutes he has been playing, complained of a tight hamstring in the second half, but did finish out the game for the Lakers. It was a struggle all night for the Spaniard however, as he managed a season-low eight points and nine rebounds in just under 39 minutes.
The lone bright spot for the Lakers on this night was the play of the bench. Matt Barnes was a spark in the second half, particularly in the fourth quarter when they Lakers went up by nine. He scored 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Shannon Brown added 11 points.
The Rockets shot a sizzling 50.6% from the field, and 10-22 (45.5%) from the three-point line. The Lakers, who were over 50% for much of the game, shot just 45.5% from the field and hit only 5-16 (31.3%) of their three-point attempts. The Rockets also played without center Yao Ming, and point guard Aaron Brooks, both recovering from leg injuries.
The Lakers try to get back on track Friday at home against the struggling Sacramento Kings. And with the way thing are going, nothing looks like a sure thing anymore.
Lakers Stay Undefeated, Down Rockets!
11.09.08
The Los Angeles continued their perfect start to the 2008-09 season, raylling from 16 down to defeat the Houston Rockets handily 111-82, running their record to 5-0.
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.
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
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