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 Los Angeles Lakers
Western Conference Standing : 1 Streak: Won 3 |
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 Minesota Timberwolves
Western Conference Standing : 14 Streak: Lost 9 |
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Bryant leads Lakers to 98-86 win
LOS ANGELES(AP) Kobe Bryant had 26 points and five assists, and the Los Angeles Lakers pulled away in the fourth quarter to beat the struggling Minnesota Timberwolves 98-86 on Sunday night. Pau Gasol had 18 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, Andrew Bynum added 14 points and nine rebounds, and Trevor Ariza scored 14 points for the Lakers. The win was the 13th in the last 14 games for the Lakers, whose 20-3 record is the second-best in the NBA behind Boston's 22-2 mark, but it wasn't very impressive. The Lakers won despite being outrebounded 53-46. They forced 17 turnovers while committing 10 themselves and shot 44.7 percent to Minnesota's 36.1 percent. Al Jefferson had 20 points and 13 rebounds to lead Minnesota. Craig Smith added 18 points and eight rebounds, and Ryan Gomes scored 13 for the Timberwolves (4-19), who lost their ninth straight game and fourth in a row since Kevin McHale took over as coach last Monday. The Timberwolves trailed 76-70 before a basket by Ariza and four straight points by Bryant gave the Lakers a 12-point lead with 4 1/2 minutes remaining. Minnesota didn't threaten after that. The Timberwolves have the NBA's second-worst record and are 2-10 on the road, but they led 57-54 with 6 1/2 minutes left in the third quarter after scoring eight straight points. But a 3-pointer by Bryant, a basket by Lamar Odom and five straight points by Luke Walton gave the Lakers a seven-point lead, and they were on top the rest of the way. It was 69-62 entering the final period. Both teams shot 2-of-11 to begin the second quarter, explaining why they each scored five points in the first 6 minutes, leaving the Lakers ahead 25-23. The Timberwolves scored the next five points before the Lakers went on a 17-9 run to finish the period for a 42-37 halftime lead despite being outrebounded 31-18. Minnesota committed 13 turnovers to six for Los Angeles in the opening 24 minutes. The Lakers led by as many as seven points before settling for a 20-18 lead after one quarter of play. Notes: The Lakers entertain the New York Knicks on Tuesday night before beginning a four-game road trip Friday in Miami. After the trip finishes Dec. 23 in New Orleans, the Lakers return home to host the Boston Celtics in their long-awaited Christmas Day matchup. ... The Lakers have won eight of their last nine games against Minnesota and five straight over the Timberwolves at home. ... Minnesota's losing streak is its longest since they dropped 12 in a row to finish the 2006-07 season and begin the 2007-08 campaign. ... The game was the first in Los Angeles for Minnesota rookie Kevin Love since he decided to leave UCLA and turn pro after his freshman year. "He's getting better all the time,'' McHale said. "He really brings a lot of energy, a great basketball feel. I think he's been tremendous, he's played very well.'' Love had two points and 10 in a reserve role. ... The Lakers were held under 100 points for the first time in 15 games. They've scored at least 100 in 19 of their 23 games. The Timberwolves have reached 100 just once in their last nine games and eight of 23 overall.
Copyright 2008 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-TIMBERWOLVES PREVIEWby Mike Trudell, Lakers.com Last season, Minnesota traded me to Los Angeles for former USC med student Robby Sikka, 3 future first-round draft picks and cash, returning Sikka to the place he grew up, and putting him back in place as a self-proclaimed fantastic Timberwolves mind. As you’ll soon discover from listening, “fantastic” is too strong a word … But since he’s my long-time buddy and has watched nearly every Wolves game for roughly the last 15 years, he made it onto the podcast. As it were, we went back and forth about the change in Minnesota since Kevin McHale replaced Randy Wittman as head coach, spoke about Kevin Love’s recent improvement (11 points, 12 boards in the last five games), detailed Al Jefferson’s effectiveness and wondered what will become of the mercurial Rashad McCants. I also made fun of Robby’s terrible fantasy teams, and listened to him guarantee a Wolves’ victory on Sunday.
GAME NOTES
NOTES & CONNECTIONS The Lakers swept last season’s series with the Timberwolves 3-0 after taking 3-out-of- 4 games from Minnesota in 2006-07. This will be the 74th meeting between the two franchises with Los Angeles holding a 52-21 advantage. In their last 10 overall - contests, the Lakers are 7-3 against the Timberwolves and have won 7-of-their-last-8 meetings including four straight. The Lakers are 13-4 all-time against the Timberwolves at STAPLES Center and 7-3 in their last 10 games in Los Angeles. At Target Center, the Lakers are 5-5 in their last 10 road games against the Timberwolves. Under head coach Phil Jackson, the Lakers are 19-12 against Minnesota. Former Laker Mark Madsen, who currently plays for Minnesota, averaged 2.6 points, 2.6 rebounds and 11.3 minutes in 183 games over three seasons with the Lakers. The Lakers and Timberwolves have met once in the postseason during the first round of the 2003 Playoffs. Los Angeles defeated the Wolves 4-2 despite Minnesota holding home-court advantage. No Timberwolves remain from their 2002- 03 roster while Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher are the only current Lakers who played in that series. In 42 career games including 34 starts, Bryant is averaging 23.1 points versus Minnesota. In 2007, Bryant scored 50 points on March 18, 2007 vs. Minnesota, becoming the first Laker since Elgin Baylor in December of 1962 to post consecutive 50-point games as well as the first player since Wilt Chamberlain in 1963 to follow a 60-plus point scoring night with 50-plus points. Additionally, Bryant’s 50-point effort matched Cedric Ceballos’ series record 50-point game posted on December 20, 1994.
LAKERS SCOUTING REPORT
The T’Wolves are a very young team and they are currently trying to make the transition to new coach Kevin McHale. As is usually the case when a coaching...
LAKERS UPDATES
BRYANT LEADS ALL WESTERN CONF. PLAYERS AFTER 1ST ROUND OF ALL-STAR BALLOTING STRONG STARTS WIRE-TO-WIRE |
