Twitter This Utah, “Sweep”

Energy Solutions was the venue for Game 3 but the Los Angeles Lakers continued their winning ways with a 111-110 squeaker over the Utah Jazz to go up 3-0 in the Western Conference Semifinals of the 2010 NBA Playoffs. A change in scenery did little to prevent the defending champs from taking an overwhelming lead in the best-of-seven series with the Jazz now clinging to their playoff lives. It was a

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night of big 3’s from both sides, as the two teams battled one another from long-distance. Derek Fisher’s (20 points on 7-13, 3-7 from deep, 3 assists, 2 rebounds) third long-ball of the contest gave the Lakers a 109-108 lead with 0:28 seconds remaining, and then Kobe Bryant (35 points on 13-24, 3-7 from downtown, 7 assists, 4 rebounds, 1 steal) sealed the deal by sinking a pair of pressure-filled free throws as the Jazz came up short at the end. But the end was not without some nail-biting drama as the Lakers were unable to inbounds the ball with 4.4 seconds left, turning it over instead to give the Jazz one last opportunity to pull off the win.

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The game started ragged for both clubs as they struggled to find the bottom of the net. A sea of white, many holding up photos of Kobe’s now infamous white shoot greeted the team as the frenzied Utah fans tried to rattle the Lakers at any given opportunity. It was two full minutes before any team would score, and it was the home team Jazz that enjoyed a 11-4 lead. CJ Miles (11 points on 4-7, 1 rebound) connected on two 3-pointers to open the game, sandwiched by another trey by Deron Williams (28 points on 6-13, 9 assists, 4 rebounds) to give the Jazz the early lead. Kobe was the sole source of offense for the Lakers in the 1st period, scoring 9 consecutive points to keep them close. The Jazz were clearly packing it in, daring the Lakers to shoot from outside. They did a much improved job in limiting the powerful inside game of the Lakers as both Andrew Bynum (0 points on 0-1, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 blocked shot in 20-minutes) and Pau Gasol (14 points on 6-12, 17 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocked shots) had difficulty finding open looks. Utah clung to a meager 22-17 advantage at the close of the first quarter.

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Utah would open the 2nd quarter with a 14-6 run to give them a 36-23 advantage and suddenly it was looking like another disappointing Game 3 for the Lakers. Shannon Brown (9 points on 4-12, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 blocked shot in 19-minutes) and Jordan Farmar (5 points on 2-6, 1 rebound in 12-minutes) would momentarily stem the scoring drought, but the Jazz would get a much needed lift from Kyle Korver (23 points on 9-10, 5-5 from long distance, 1 rebound, 1 assist, 1 steal) as the sharp-shooter finally dialed in his range and nailed his second 3-pointer for a 41-29 advantage at the 7:05 mark. But the Lakers would outscore the Jazz with a 21-13 run to draw within 54-50 at halftime. Kobe would pour in 11-points while Brown dropped in all of his 9-points in the period.

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The Lakers opened the 3rd period with a 10-5 run capped by a Kobe 3-bomb, taking the lead at 60-59. Utah would call time-out and Paul Milsap (13 points on 3-6, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 blocked shot) would draw the foul, leading to a pair of free throws and regaining the lead in the process. Fish would answer back but Carlos Boozer (14 points on 7-16, 14 rebounds, 2 assists) would score on an easy 6-footer in the paint to grab the lead back again. The Jazz would hold a slim 67-64 lead when Ron Artest (20 points on 7-13, 4-7 from no-no land, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 1 blocked shot) would drain the first of his three triples of the period to tie the game. His second came moments later, giving the Lakers a 70-69 advantage. The Jazz scored the next five points to regain control, but D-Fish nailed a triple of his own to knot the game at 73-73 with 3:25 left in the period. The two teams would trade baskets down the stretch as the Lakers hung onto an 82-80 margin at the end of three.

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It was Artest vs. Korver to start the final period of play as Ron-Ron scored 9-points while Korver dropped in 8-points. D-Will’s 3-pointer along with Wesley Matthews (9 points on 2-11, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 1 blocked shot) pair of free throws gave the Jazz a 98-93 advantage as the crowd went into a mad frenzy. Artest would miss his next 3-point attempt, but Gasol was there for the offensive rebound. Kobe would score inside the lane to subdue the crowd at 98-95. A Utah turnover would result in Lamar Odom (8 points on 2-6, 8 rebounds) converting 1-2 free throws to narrow the Jazz lead to 98-96. Neither team would score in the next two minutes until Williams converted a pair of free throws for a 100-96 lead with 3:10 left on the clock. LO would convert his next two free throws to trim the lead to a deuce, and then after a Boozer turnover, he would drill a deep 3-pointer for a 101-100 Lakers lead. Milsap and Kobe would exchange baskets but Korver would get loose for another trey giving the lead back to Utah. Matthews would hit 1-2 from the line to give the Jazz a 106-103 edge at the 1:06 mark and things began to look dark for the Lakers.

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Kobe’s 24-foot 3-pointer would immediately knot the score at 106-all and suddenly it was the Jazz that were back on their heels. D-Will’s 18-footer over Fisher would give Utah renewed hope and the 108-106 lead. But Fisher responded with the biggest shot of the night, draining a long triple over Korver and

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the 109-108 lead with 0:28 seconds left. Matthews would miss an uncontested 3-pointer, but Boozer would corrale the errant shot, only to have his put-back swatted away by Gasol. Kobe was fouled and swished both freebies for the 111-108 lead, and presumably the game with only 0:07 seconds left. Williams was intentionally fouled before he had a chance to take his 3-point attempt, and his two free throws trimmed the lead to 111-110 with the Lakers in possession of the ball and only 0:06 seconds remaining. LO had difficulty finding an open man and wisely called a time-out. The Lakers advanced the ball to midcourt after regrouping and Artest threw the ball inbounds to a cutting Fisher. But Matthews grabbed Fisher around the waist and apparently wrestled him to the ground in an attempt to foul and stop the clock. As the ball sailed out of Fisher’s reach, Korver came up with the “turnover” and immediately called time-out. The play was ruled incidental contact and the Jazz got the ball with 4.4 seconds to try to steal the game. Williams 3-point attempt was wide right and long, but Matthews snuck in for an uncontested tip-in that was inches off as the horn sounded to end the game. The Lakers had survived a tumultuous last few minutes but now find themselves in control of the series, up 3-0 with Game 4 set for Monday evening.

[picappgallerysingle id="8743359"]dEDGE Post Scriptum
Is it too soon to look past the Utah Jazz and on to the Western Conference Finals with Game 4 looming on the horizon? Hell no! The Jazz are melba, Orowheat and panko all rolled into one. The favorites have all moved into position to advance in the playoffs, Cleveland, Orlando and now the Lakers. But quietly creeping into play are the Phoenix Suns with their surprise 3-0 series lead over the powerful San Antonio Spurs. And Los Suns have accomplished this in quite an unorthodox way, through their defense. Yes, I did mention defense and the Suns in the same sentence. The run-and-gun philosophy of Mike D’Antoni, first scrapped by Terry Porter, then reintroduced by Alvin Gentry, have won by holding the Blazers, and now the Spurs down with a scrambling, double-teaming defense that have them on the verge of another meeting with the Lakers.

As for Utah, even with the return of AK-47, Andrei Kirilenko, the Jazz came up on the short end again. Short as in numerous, unforced turnovers down the stretch, effectively handing the game over to the Lakers. Shorter still on the uncalled foul as Fisher broke off tackle and was clearly held up and pulled down by Matthews. And shortest yet, in their failed attempt to bother Kobe with their version of the “white-out.” And umm, a note to those fans donning the white hats and scarves, you all can use some Photoshop work as well. The Jazz have run out of answers for the Lakers, and unfortunately for them, never had one to start with. The Lakers have proved that they can win big-small, inside-outside, bench-no bench. But if the Lakers hope to succeed against the Suns, they will need to get a much more balanced attack from all involved. If it were up strictly to the starting five, the Lakers would win hands-down. But Phoenix’s bench of Jared Dudley, Channing Frye, Goran Dragic, Leandro Barbosa and Louis Amundson have a clear advantage over the current version of the Lakers bench.

Lamar has slowly, yet effectively, gotten himself back into the thick of things. His 3-pointer was huge tonight and quite honestly, unexpected. Farmar and Brown have shown glimpses of success, but still play larger at home than on the road. Factor in Luke slowly making his way back into game action, Sasha’s unavailability and Mbenga and Morrison all but out of the rotation, and suddenly it looks like a lot of heavy minutes from the starters. Steve Nash is still Steve Nash, although in much briefer stints than before. But he is still capable of 20/10 on any given night. A’mare poses a huge problem for the injured Bynum or a healthy Gasol. But Jason Richardson remains the key to the Suns successes or failures. He has not shown that he can guard Kobe and the bigger Grant Hill is a hop, skip and a jump too slow for the Mamba. That leaves Dudley as the latest incarnation of the Kobe-stopper. At the beginning of the playoffs, we would have jumped at the opportunity to face the Suns. But as they have shown, they are a much different team than the one we are accustomed to seeing. The Thunder put a bad feeling into the Lakers that ultimately woke them up. The Jazz have done nothing to even cause them to bat an eyelash. So, as the Lakers enter Game 4 with bigger sights set in their minds, don’t fall prey to the notion that we’re better than everyone else, because to tell you the truth, we haven’t proved anything just yet.