Lakers Shoot Themselves to a Win Over the Warriors

Shooting wars often leave no winners but in this case the Los Angeles Lakers came away with a win over the Golden State Warriors, 124-118 at Staples Center. Ron Artest missed his third game in a row, still suffering from post-concussion dizziness. The Warriors held a comfortable 35-29 lead after the first quarter of play but unlike the game against the Suns, the Lakers didn’t attempt to play any defense in this contest, allowing the Warriors to score the most points in the first period against them this season. The Warriors were able to take any shot they wanted with little or no resistance, whereas the Lakers simply tried to keep pace with the hurried offense favored by their opponents from the Bay Area.

The Warriors jumped out to a 42-29 lead after a 7-0 run to start the 2nd period forcing Phil Jackson to call a much-needed time-out to try to get his squad to focus on defense. But the Warriors continued with their hot hand as the two teams settled in trading baskets. Kobe Bryant’s (44 points, 11 assists, 4 rebounds) three-point play finally seemed to get the Lakers over the hump as they closed to 46-36. The Lakers tightened up their pressure and forced the Warriors into more difficult shots. A Pau Gasol (27 points, 12 rebounds, 3 blocked shots) left handed hook in the paint brought the Lakers to within 48-40 with 5:37 left in the first half. Gasol followed that up with a spin move in the post for an emphatic jam. A CJ Watson (14 points, 4 assists, 2 steals, 2 rebounds) trey from the top of the key finally stemmed the tide and put a halt to the Lakers run. A Sasha Vujacic (6 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists) three-pointer drew the Lakers to within 55-49 but Stephen Curry (15 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists) answered with a jump shot of his own. Another Watson trey from deep in the corner pushed the advantage back up to 60-49. Each time the Lakers got close, the Warriors would go on a run of their own to distance themselves from the defending world champions. A pair of Kobe free throws followed by a Vlade Radmanovic (11 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists) turnover that led to a Shannon Brown (7 points, 3 rebounds) slam dunk made the halftime score, 60-53 at the break.

Kobe started where he left off, scoring the first six points of the second half. But the Lakers were content to trade basket-for-basket offering little defensive presence in favor of hoping the Warriors would simply begin to miss their shots. And the Warriors finally obliged as the Lakers crept back into the game, 68-65 behind numerous second chance opportunities. Gasol’s three-point play off a Lamar Odom (11 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocked shots) offensive rebound drew them to within 69-68. Kobe isolated the smaller Curry in the post and drew the shooting foul, giving the Lakers their first lead since early in the first quarter, 70-69. A free throw by Andrew Bynum (11 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals) followed by a Derek Fisher (6 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds) three-pointer extended the lead to 74-71. A turnover by the Warriors led to a pair of free throws by Odom and the Lakers had pushed their run to 23-11 to start the third period. But the Warriors responded with a run of their own, closing the gap to 78-77 with just over 3 minutes in the third. A timeout by the Lakers unfortunately led to a flurry of hurried and missed shots and fortunately, the Warriors were unable to muster any offensive flow themselves. A Ronny Turiaf (7 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 5 blocked shots) block on a Kobe dunk attempt had the former teammates cheerfully jostling verbally with one another. A Brown three-pointer followed by a Jordan Farmar (12 points, 5 assists, 3 steals) steal and lay-in punctuated a brief five point lead but a Turiaf jam closed the gap to 88-86 at the end of three.

Gasol’s free throws followed by a trey by Farmar made it 93-86 to open the final period but Radmanovic responded with his own three-pointer. A drive by Monta Ellis (22 points, 7 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 steals) cut the lead further, forcing Phil Jackson to reinsert Kobe sooner than he preferred. Kobe quickly hit a trifecta and followed it up with another from the opposite side of the court. Kobe’s eyes grew wide with anticipation as Radmanovich was forced to guard him. He scored again on a pull-up jumper from the elbow that had Vlade flailing wildly as he sailed by. Ellis continued with his hot hand as he cleanly drained a 20-footer over an outstretched Gasol. An LO three-point play off a bullet feed from Kobe made it 104-99 with just over 7 minutes in regulation. A trey by Watson pulled the Warriors to within a deuce, and then a give-and-go drive by Ellis knotted the score at 104-104. Kobe’s three-point play followed by a pair of free throws by Sasha gave the lead back to the Lakers, 109-104. No stops was the name of this game as the Warriors yet again came back to close within 109-108. A pair of free throws by Kobe netted him his 39th and 40th points of the game for his 103rd 40+ point game of his career. The two teams traded baskets with neither running away from the other. Another three-pointer from Farmar gave the Lakers a 116-112 lead with 2:26 left to play. Kobe picked up a technical foul after arguing on a call and the Warriors were able to pull within 116-115 after a pair of free throws by Corey Maggette (25 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists). An LO offensive put-back made it a three point advantage, and then another pair of free throws safely put the Lakers in front, 120-115 with 1:05 left. Gasol’s two freebies shortly after then made it an insurmountable 122-115 lead as the Warriors were forced to foul with time running out.

Golden State shot 55.4% from the field and lost the game. They accounted for 31 assists, led 30-9 in fast break points and even blocked 10 shots, and still lost. The Lakers shot a decent 48.2% from the field and out-rebounded the Warriors, 42-38. The difference in this game was the number of free throw attempts. Golden State converted 20-28 while the Lakers made 32-36 for a 12-point advantage and a 6-point win.