Lakers Host A Block Party

Same place, same team, same result. The Los Angeles Lakers withstood another late Utah Jazz rally, this time defeating them 111-103 at Staples Center to go up 2-0 in the semifinals of the 2010 NBA Playoffs. It was a choppy start for the Lakers and a better beginning for the Jazz. Utah established themselves early with a quick 11-4 advantage behind a pair of Deron Williams (15 points on 4-16, 9 assists, 3 rebounds) 3-pointers. But the Lakers began pounding the defensive boards, getting out on transition for easy scores. Ron Artest (16 points on 7-17, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals) was the recipient early, getting great feeds from Derek Fisher (5 points, 4 assists, 1 rebound) and Pau Gasol (25 points on 7-11, 15 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocked shots, 6 turnovers). And just as simple as that, the Lakers were back in control of the game and looking to pour it on. Kobe Bryant (30 points on 10-22, 8 assists, 5 rebounds, 1 steal, 3 blocked shots, 7 turnovers) played the role of facilitator in the first half, finding Gasol and Andrew Bynum (17 points on 7-9, 14 rebounds, 1 steal, 4 blocked shots) for easy scores whenever he drew the double-team. Artest would lead the club in scoring in the first quarter with 10-points to give the Lakers a 27-23 lead.

With Carlos Boozer (20 points on 9-21, 12 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 blocked shot) picking up a pair of early fouls, Paul Milsap (26 points on 10-17, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 steals, 1 blocked shot) carried the Jazz throughout the 2nd period. A 3-point play by Bynum off a Kobe feed would extend the lead to 39-29. CJ Miles (20 points on 6-15, 6 assists, 4 rebounds, 3 steals, 1 blocked shot) would drain a trey but Kobe would answer with consecutive fast break buckets and the lead grew to 45-34. The only thing keeping the Jazz within striking distance were the numerous turnovers by the Lakers. The Lakers would cough up the ball 20-times, allowing the Jazz to get their own transition game in gear. Milsap would score the next 8-points for the Jazz on his own but Gasol would match him with 7-points himself. Gasol would find a cutting Artest for the layup and a 56-42 lead. With Staples Center ready to erupt, the Lakers would commit 4 turnovers over the last 2:00 of the half, effectively ceasing all of the momentum they had established. But the Jazz were only able to chip away a deuce off the lead for a halftime score of 58-46. The Lakers shot 52.3% from the field while the Jazz struggled with a measly 34.7%. The 9 Laker turnovers in the first half prevented them from taking a much greater lead heading into the locker room.

Sloppy play continued to plague the Lakers to start the 3rd period. And just like in Game 1, the Jazz began chipping away at the lead. Miles’ dunk off a Kobe turnover would trim the lead down to single digits at 68-59. Gasol would score to momentarily halt the slide, but Boozer would elude everyone for an uncontested layup as the Lakers looked perplexed on the missed assignment. Bynum would then score on a beautiful hook shot for a 74-63 advantage. Boozer would then pick up his 4th foul seconds later, and Gasol would convert the pair of free throws to put the Lakers back in control. Kobe’s difficult fall-away would hand the Lakers their largest lead of the game, 80-65 with 4:03 remaining in the quarter. The Jazz would go on a 12-5 scoring spree with Wesley Matthews (14 points on 5-11, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals) providing a trey and a driving layup in the run. And just like that, the Jazz had gotten themselves back to within 85-77. Kobe would close the period with a 7-footer in the lane as he amassed his 13th point of the period and gave the Lakers an 87-77 lead.

Lamar Odom (11 points on 4-4, 15 rebounds, 4 assists, 3 blocked shots) got the Lakers going early with a pair of free throws to open the 4th quarter. But Kyle Korver (4 points on 2-5) and Milsap would combine for six straight points and suddenly it was 89-83 with tons of time on the clock. LO would score on a dunk with a re-energized Bynum blocking a Boozer attempt at the other end. Jordan Farmar (6 points on 2-6) drained a triple for a 94-83 cushion, but a 9-2 run by the Jazz would whittle the lead all the way down to 96-92 with 6:03 left on the game clock. Gasol’s “Kareem-esque” hook shot would give the Lakers a more comfortable 98-92 lead. Bynum then swatted away a driving attempt by D-Will only to witness this teammates spit up the ball again. Miles would score on a hard drive to the basket but Kobe’s pair of free throws off a silly Milsap foul would maintain the 6-point advantage. Kobe drew another foul, this time on Miles, but he would convert only 1-2 from the charity stripe. LO’s block on a Boozer dunk attempt would result in Fisher breaking out on the fast break before getting clobbered in the process. Fish would uncharacteristically miss both free throw attempts but Gasol was there for the offensive rebound. Artest would launch an ill-advised 3-pointer but fortunately for him, Odom was there to grab the miss and provided a third opportunity for the team to score. Artest finally made amends on a tip-in of his own miss for a 103-94 advantage with 3:32 remaining.

• dEDGE Post Scriptum •

The Lakers would record three more blocked shots down the stretch as Kobe carried them to the end with 9-points in the last 4+ minutes of play. Artest’s two-handed slam was the exclamation point as the Lakers shut down the Jazz in crunch time with a display of defensive wizardry. Their 14-blocks in tonight’s contest doesn’t even take into account the number of shots that were altered or thrown away. The Lakers would hold a 58-40 rebound advantage to go along with their 64-50 edge in points in the paint. They also registered 19 fast break points compared to 11 by the Jazz. But their 20 turnovers would result in 26-points for Utah, a number that must come down significantly if the Lakers wish to prevail on the road in Games 3 and 4.

Again, there was never a moment when the game seemed to be slipping out of the Lakers grasp. Utah had no answer for the huge advantage the Lakers hold in the frontcourt. Gasol, Bynum and Odom combined for 50-points and 34 rebounds! Toss in Artest and that number grows to 66/40. Kyrylo Fesenko, the Utah back-up center forced into action due to Mehmet Okur’s torn achilles tendon, managed to contribute 2 points on 1-7, 0-4 free throws, 3 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 blocked shot in 17-minutes of action. Many of his shots were at point-blank range and were uncontested as well. Both Bynun and Gasol chose to ignore him on offense, instead providing help defense on the Jazz penetrators. Without recording much playing time during the regular season, Fesenko has been spotty at best since Okur went down. He played relatively well against Denver, but has looked totally lost and unsure of himself against the Lakers. Had he converted on his easy looks, neither Pau or Drew would have recorded as many blocks as they did. And if Utah hopes to make this series a series, they are going to need someone other than Williams or Boozer to step up and be the difference maker. Due back in action for Game 3 is AK-47, Andrei Kirilenko.