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Lakers Gameday | 11/30/07 | Jazz 120, Lakers 96
Location: Energy Solutions Arena, Salt Lake City, UT | Time: 7:30pm | TV: KCAL HD, ESPN | Radio: KLAC AM 570, ESPN 1330

Team 1 2 3 4 F
Los Angeles Lakers 22 29 31 14 96
Utah Jazz 30 40 32 18 120

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Andrei Kirilenko has 3rd career triple-double to lead Jazz over Lakers

Andrei Kirilenko had his third career triple-double and Deron Williams scored a career-high 35 points to help the Utah Jazz overcome injuries to two starters and beat the Los Angeles Lakers 120-96 on Friday night.

Kirilenko finished with 20 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists, along with six steals and four blocks.

Williams had more turnovers than assists, but was 14-for-24 from the floor and the Jazz won without leading scorer Carlos Boozer (ankle) and center Mehmet Okur (back spasms).

Kyrylo Fesenko added six points and seven rebounds in his NBA debut -- just hours after he was called up from Utah's D-League affiliate in Orem.

Kobe Bryant had 28 points to lead the lackluster Lakers, who were flat one night after beating Denver 126-99 in Los Angeles.

Williams overcame that almost by himself and left the passing to Kirilenko, the lanky forward who was back to his everywhere-on-the-court self.

Kirilenko achieved the triple-double with an offensive rebound that led to Ronnie Brewer's dunk, putting Utah up 111-90 with 5:23 left. The only remaining suspense was whether he would reach double figures in any other category.

Paul Millsap added 20 points and nine rebounds, and Brewer scored 14 for Utah.

Lakers guard Derek Fisher finished with three points and two assists in his return to Utah, where he played last season but asked over the summer to be released from his contract because of his 1-year-old daughter's cancer treatments in New York.

Jazz fans felt slighted when Fisher signed with the Lakers and he was booed often Friday, sometimes even louder than Bryant.

Jordan Farmar scored 19 of his 21 points in the second half for the Lakers, who had no answer for the shorthanded Jazz in the first half. Utah was 29-for-50 from the floor in the first two periods and led 70-51 at halftime.

The Lakers used a 10-0 run in the third quarter to pull to 87-70, but Williams ended the drought for Utah with a three-point play, drawing Bryant's fourth foul and putting the Jazz back up by 20 with the free throw.

Fesenko, the 7-foot-1 Ukrainian picked up by the Jazz in a draft-day trade, was a fan favorite by the end of the night. In his first game, he posted up Chris Mihm, then made a turnaround bank shot for his first NBA points. He added a dunk at the end of the first quarter off a pass from Kirilenko and had to leave briefly in the second half after Mihm's elbow caught him in the eye and drew blood.

Fesenko got another loud ovation when he returned -- with a puffy right eye -- in the fourth quarter.

Game notes
It was Kirilenko's first triple-double since March 2006 against Sacramento. ... Bryant scored 13 straight points for the Lakers in the second quarter, hitting back-to-back 3-pointers and then a three-point play that kept the Lakers in it for a while. ... Boozer injured the ankle Wednesday in a win in Philadelphia. ... Matt Harpring scored 12 for the Jazz.

Copyright 2007 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited

Lakers-Jazz Preview
By MIKE VOTTA, STATS Senior Writer

Already off to a strong start this season, Utah's Carlos Boozer is having a particularly strong week so far.

Boozer will try to build on an impressive three-game stretch when the Jazz host the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday.

Boozer is averaging 30.7 points in Utah's three games this week, beginning with a season-best 36-point effort in Sunday's 103-93 win in Detroit, and has shot 75 percent over that span. He scored 12 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter in Wednesday's 106-95 win in Philadelphia despite tweaking his right ankle before halftime.

"I think he's definitely an MVP candidate," said teammate Deron Williams, who had 15 points and 15 assists against the 76ers. "A lot of games he has put us on his back. He does everything well, and he's tough."

Boozer leads the Northwest Division-leading Jazz (11-5) with a career-best 25.4 points and 11.2 rebounds per game, and has recorded a double-double in all but four of his 16 games. He managed only seven rebounds on his balky ankle Wednesday, but still managed to lead his team to the win.

"We're executing our offense," Boozer said. "Deron Williams is doing a great job of running the offense and getting us good shots on pick-and-rolls."

Ronnie Brewer added 19 points for the Jazz, who wrapped up a 2-1 road trip. Utah is returning home, where it has won six straight after dropping its home opener 106-95 against Houston on Nov. 1.

The home game is one of just four in a 16-game stretch before Christmas.

"Were a very confident team," Williams said. "When we execute, well get a lot of assists and convert easy baskets."

Utah has lost its last three games against the Lakers (9-6), including a 119-109 defeat on Nov. 4 in the first meeting this season. Kobe Bryant led Los Angeles with 36 points in that game.

The Lakers are coming off Thursday's 127-99 win over Denver. The victory came hours after coach Phil Jackson said he agreed to terms of a two-year contract extension believed to be worth about $24 million, putting him under contract through the 2009-10 season.

The Hall of Fame coach has won nine championships, including three with the Lakers, tying him for the most all-time with former Boston Celtics coach Red Auerbach.

"I've had tremendous successes and ultimately some great highs in this game, but the ultimate thing is about this team coming back into prominence in this game," Jackson said. "We want this team to get back that consistency of a team that wan win on a consistent basis."

Bryant, who ranks second in the league with 27.6 points per game, had 24 on Thursday but didn't play in the fourth quarter - even though the Lakers only had a six-point lead after three - because of the strong play of Los Angeles' bench.

The reserves outscored Denver's bench 63-29. Sasha Vujacic scored 19 of his career-high 22 points in the fourth, and Luke Walton chipped in a season-best 14.

"The young fellas came in and took care of business,'' said Bryant, who had scored 31 and 35 points in his previous two games. "We have young players who have a lot of heart and who care. And when you have that combination, you have a lot of potential."

The Lakers have split six road games this season, and have lost five of their last seven games in Salt Lake City.

Copyright 2007 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited

Los Angeles Lakers
Record: 9-7
Streak: Lost 1

INJURY REPORT
Kwame Brown: Moderate Ankle & Knee Sprain - Out
Utah Jazz
Record: 12-5
Streak: Won 2

INJURY REPORT
Carlos Boozer: Sprained Right Knee - Game Time Decision
Mehmet Okur: Back Spasms - Game Time Decision

Lakers Best
Points

K. Bryant
28
Rebounds

A. Bynum
10
Assists

L. Walton
6
Plus/Minus

V. Radmanovic
+5

STARTERS
Los Angeles Lakers
Guard

D. Fisher
Guard

K. Bryant
Forward

L. Odom
Forward

R. Turiaf
Center

A. Bynum
Utah Jazz
Guard

D. Williams
Guard

R. Brewer
Forward

A. Kirilenko
Forward

P. Millsap
Center

J. Collins

GAME NOTES
SEASON & SERIES NOTES; CONNECTIONS
The Lakers lead their current season series with the Jazz 1-0 after winning last season’s series with Utah 2-1. The Jazz and Lakers have now met 140 times in the regular season (89-51), 122 times since the Jazz moved to Utah (76-46). The Lakers have gone 6-4 in their last 10 overall games with the Jazz and are winners of their last three straight versus Utah. In Utah, the Lakers are 4-6 in their last 10 road games but won their most recent game at EnergySolutions Arena 102-94 2/26/07 behind 35 points from Kobe Bryant. The Lakers are 13-3 all-time against the Jazz at STAPLES Center (8-2 in their last 10 home games). Under head coach Phil Jackson, the Lakers are 19-9 against Utah. In the first game of the Lakers current three-game win streak against the Jazz back on November 30, 2006, the Lakers scored a series record 132 points, improving upon the old mark of 131 points achieved at Utah on December 4, 1986. Additionally in that game, Kobe Bryant established a new series-high with 52 points against the Jazz, surpassing his own record of 43 points (3/22/05) while also bettering Adrian Dantley’s Jazz mark of 50 established in November of 1979. Bryant’s 30-point third quarter tied his own franchise record and is tied for the fourth-highest scoring quarter in NBA history. In 37 games against the Jazz (29 starts), Bryant is averaging 25.8 points. Bryant is currently 45 points shy of reaching 1,000 for his career against the Jazz and is averaging 36.8 points against Utah over his last four games. Additionally, Lakers guard Derek Fisher played last season for Utah, appearing in all 82 games, starting 61 and averaging 10.1 points and 3.3 assists in 27.9 minutes.

SURVEY SAYS …
In the NBA’s most recent player survey based on opening day rosters, the Lakers rank as the NBA’s 9th youngest team at 25.90 years of age, trailing only Memphis (25.87), Philadelphia (25.73), Chicago (25.72), Utah (25.61), Atlanta (25.48), Golden State (25.42), Seattle (25.35) and Portland (24.06). Of those eight teams, only Utah at 11-5 has a better record than the Lakers at 8-6.

However, with their November 20th acquisition of 22-year old Trevor Ariza from Orlando in exchange for veterans Brian Cook and Maurice Evans, the Lakers now rank as the SECOND youngest team in the NBA (25 years, 158 days) behind Portland (24 years, 53 days) and ahead of Seattle (25 years, 167 days) as of 11/26/07. Additionally, the Lakers have two of the league’s 10 youngest players in Andrew Bynum (tied for 6th youngest with Milwaukee’s Yi Jianlian) and Javaris Crittenton (5th).

DOUBLE-DOUBLE THREAT
Entering the season, Andrew Bynum had posted 10 career double-doubles, all of which came during the 2006-07 campaign. Through 14 games this season, Bynum is averaging 11.1 points and 10.1 rebounds while nearly matching his career double-double total with EIGHT this year. Among NBA leaders, Bynum currently ranks 10th in double-doubles. Among the 15 players in the top 10 who have posted EIGHT or more double-doubles this season, Bynum is doing so in the fewest minutes (25.6) by far, with the next closest players (Nash, Okafor, Randolph) all averaging 33.9 minutes per game.

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