Gameday: Celtics 87, Lakers 88

Gasol: 25 pts, 14 reb, key block in 88-87 win

By JIMMY GOLEN

Posted Feb 09 2012 8:04PM

BOSTON (AP) Pau Gasol blocked Ray Allen's putback attempt at the buzzer in overtime and the Los Angeles Lakers held on to beat the Boston Celtics 88-87 on Thursday night.

Gasol finished with 25 points and 14 rebounds, and Andrew Bynum had 16 points and 17 rebounds to help the Lakers snap a two-game losing streak.

Allen scored 22 points and Kevin Garnett had 12 points and 12 rebounds for Boston, which had won five in a row and nine of its previous 10 games. But Garnett was 6 for 23 from the field and Paul Pierce was 7 for 18, including a clean-look jumper at the end of overtime.

It rimmed out and Allen tried to push the rebound in, but Gasol got his fingertips on it and it floated away as the buzzer sounded.

The Lakers had lost six of their last seven games on the road.

But a trip to Boston to play the rival Celtics was just what they needed.

Both teams shot under 40 percent, and they each missed twice to start the overtime before Bryant sank a jumper that gave the Lakers an 84-82 lead with 3:30 left. Allen missed, then Steve Blake made a jumper to give the Lakers a four-point lead - their biggest of the game.

Pierce made a jumper and, after Gasol missed, Pierce hit a 3-pointer over Metta World Peace to make it 87-86 Boston. Bryant missed, but Bynum tipped it in with 1:30 left to give L.A. the lead, and it held up.

Pierce finished with 18 points, nine rebounds and seven assists.

Bynum converted a three-point play to give the Lakers an 80-79 lead with 2:39 left in regulation, and it stayed that way through several trips down the floor before the Celtics called timeout with 1:16 left. After the inbounds pass, Allen made a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer to put Boston into the lead.

World Peace, who hit the NBA title-clinching basket for the Lakers against Boston in 2010 back when he was known as Ron Artest, missed a 3. Garnett grabbed the rebound and the "Beat L.A.!" chants began in the TD Garden.

But Garnett missed a jumper and Gasol tipped in Bryant's miss to tie it 82-all. The Celtics had a chance to win it in regulation, but Pierce got trapped near midcourt and Pietrus was forced to fire up a no-chance 30-footer at the buzzer.

The Celtics led by nine points in the first quarter, but the Lakers erased the deficit in the second and briefly took a one-point lead at 38-37. Boston led 64-59 when Gasol converted a three-point play and Bryant made back-to-back jumpers to give Los Angeles a 66-64 lead.

Notes: Pierce was the only Celtic selected to the All-Star roster when the reserves were announced Thursday. ... Boston's Marquis Daniels played for the first time in four games because Sasha Pavlovic had a flare-up in a left wrist injury that he sustained in training camp. ... Bynum had nine points and nine rebounds in the first half. ... The AFC champion New England Patriots were well represented: Vince Wilfork, Rob Gronkowski and owner Robert Kraft were all at the game, fresh off Sunday's Super Bowl loss to the New York Giants. ... The teams meet again in Los Angeles on March 11. ... Garnett took a season-high 23 shots. ... Bryant made his first four shots and then missed seven of his next 10.

Copyright 2012 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

POSTGAME QUOTES

Mike Brown:

On defeating the Celtics:

“We had a lot of guys step up and provide very good individual performances that may or may not show up in the stats sheet. Then you (can) talk about the jump ball (Kevin) Garnett and (Derek) Fisher and Pau (Gasol) making the right read and coming up with the ball on that jump ball. Andrew Bynum at the end of the game closing out, guarding a guy on the perimeter, making him swing it and then getting back and covering the rim. His ability to rebound for us, especially offensive rebounds. He had seven offensive boards and as a team 24 second-chance points in a grind it out game is something that you need to have especially when they have the advantage in fast-break points. I thought that Metta’s (World Peace) defense the whole game was very good. He hit one shot but defensively he was a presence and so he impacted the game. You talk about Pau Gasol, one of our defensive staples (and) we have three of them is to keep giving multiple effort through the rebound. That shot that Ray Allen took at the end of the game was good in my opinion. I haven’t watched the tape, but Pau did not stop playing until he heard the horn and came up with the big block. Then obviously our bench was good. Matt Barnes gave us energy and Steve Blake was terrific. Both our point guards were terrific of attacking the clock which is an offensive staple of ours. We’re trying to do a better job of getting us in our offense so that we can get to the second and third side because Boston is a very good front side defensive team, so great all-around effort.”

On if this was the best win of the year:

“I’d have to think about it but it definitely is a very good win for us on the road. I thought we were short-handed in Utah and our guys somehow found a way to win in overtime. This win also is a very good win for us on the road especially with the way Boston has been playing and not losing our composure and getting it done in overtime.”

On Pau Gasol getting more shots tonight:

“He was just aggressive. We called his number a few times, but I don’t think we called his number anymore tonight than what we have in the past. I thought our ball movement and body movement was pretty good. The ball ended up in his hands a lot especially when he plays hand-off basketball with Kobe (Bryant) or pick-and-roll basketball with Kobe because everybody wants to blitz Kobe right now. So Pau is going to have some looks on the backside. Then, I thought Pau was aggressive trying to get to the offensive glass too.”

On if this is the best win:

“Any win right now is our best win of the year. We did ok, we did well. Our execution in the 4th is still very poor in terms of what we need to accomplish. But all in all I thought it was a good defensive effort.”

On conversation with Rob Gronkowski:

I told him the Eagles need a tight end. I’m recruiting! He’s a freak athlete. He shouted at me he shouted back.

On conversation with Doc Rivers:

"I told him his son got some big kahones! He should be very proud."

On NY and Jeremy Lin:

“I know who he is but I don’t know what’s going on with that. We got to get a win. We got to go in there and play well. We’ve played extremely poorly against teams that have been undermanned so tomorrow we have to try to break that.”

On the final play:

“You just got to play until the clock runs out and that’s what I try to do because I’ve been in situations before in my career where you just freeze and you just catch yourself looking at the ball and somebody makes a play and you end up losing a game. So tonight I’m glad that I was able to continue playing until the end and play a good game for my team.”

On the height advantage:

“We are just active. They do a job on being really aggressive loading the strong side of the floor and obviously with Kobe creating so much attention sometimes they took the bodies off us and we just took advantage of that and tried to pursue the ball and get those loose balls and rebounds and put them back.”

On last play of regulation:

“I thought our execution the whole game was terrible. I thought this was an awful game, except for they won. If we had won it, it would’ve been an awful game that we had won. That’s how I felt. So, just thought our execution was off all night. You know, give them credit: some of it was defense. I thought a lot of it was self-inflicted. We’ve been very good at just running the floor, ball movement, second and third options, second and third picks. Today the ball just was not – it was no fun to watch.”

On if he expected the Lakers to foul at the end of the game, since they had one to give:

“We were prepared for it; we had an extra time-out. We just told them to go quick. The first play, right before overtime, we anticipated either a switch – actually, they trapped it, which left Ray (Allen) open. But Paul (Pierce) couldn’t get it to him. And he picked his dribble up, and that’s what, you know, kind of messed the play up. Second one I don’t mind; Paul (Pierce) got a decent shot, his shot. Honestly, the first option which we looked for wasn’t there, I wanted a time-out, but I gave (Rajon) Rondo the luxury of if he thought Paul can get it, go for it.”

On Lakers having more second-chance points:

“Yeah, we knew that going into the game. But what really burned me is they got probably six second-chance points with the ball on the floor. It’s one thing when it’s above everybody, and they are bigger and longer. It’s another thing when the ball’s on the floor. They can’t get both. And they did both tonight. I mean, the last play of the game, that’s how they won the game: the ball was sitting there, and (Steve) Blake wasn’t even in the play and got the ball. So, those are disappointing. You’re going to have ugly games at times, but when you have them at home, you’ve got to win the 50/50 game. And the number that stands out to me is five free-throws, zero in the second half. I just thought we took jump shots for the most part all game.”

On last possession of OT and regulation

“One of them I didn’t make the pass, the second one I just missed the shot.”

On play of team:

“I just thought we just didn’t get to our sets like we wanted to. I thought we played a little too much random pick and roll basketball. They really blocked a lot of things that we were trying to do. We weren’t able to get the hole. We tried to get to the foul line. We only shot five free throws tonight. I thought we could of done a better job at rebounding the ball and also getting out on the break which we didn’t do enough of. That was our one advantage.

On if this was a frustrating loss:

“We get one rebound down there at the end of regulation we give ourselves a great chance at winning. That was a big emphasis for us coming into the game and we just didn’t do a good job tonight.

On the loss:a

“We only shot 5 free throws tonight. I can’t say that we weren’t being aggressive. We missed shots that we pretty much take over and over again, but we just let that on go.”

On the last play of regulation:

“I’d like to look at it again. I was wide open. Paul, as he started dribbling off, both of those guys stayed with him, and I was sitting there wide open. Paul just said as he was going, he didn’t want to throw the ball. He was kind of in a bad position. It’s just the way he went off. If he knew they were going to jump up so hard and they were going to have to double him, he wuld have veered off a little bit more, so he could have a little bit better passing angle, but I thought either me or Kevin had an opportunity out there.”

Lakers-Celtics Preview

By MATT BECKER

Fans in Los Angeles and Boston delight in the rivalry between the Lakers and Celtics.

When these franchises square off in the regular season, however, the hometown fans have seldom seen their team win lately.

Struggling mightily away from Staples Center, the Lakers hope to break out of their road funk with a visit to TD Garden on Thursday night to face the Celtics, who look to extend their season-high winning streak to six.

Los Angeles is 11-2 at home but 3-9 on the road, and arrives in Boston after dropping two of the first three contests on a season-high six-game road trip. Much of the road struggles for the Lakers (14-11) stem from a defense that is allowing an average of 97.2 points compared to 85.2 at home.

Although the Celtics (14-10) have won five straight and nine of 10, Los Angeles might have better luck keeping Boston’s somewhat passive offense in check. The Celtics like to keep opponents from running and are among the league’s top teams in points allowed at 86.5 per game, but they also have one of the lowest-scoring offenses (90.8 ppg).

Taking the court at TD Garden also could work toward the Lakers’ advantage.

Los Angeles has won three straight and five of six in Boston during the regular season. That success has not bridged to the playoffs, however, as the Lakers lost five of six games there in the 2008 and 2010 NBA finals. The Celtics captured the title in ’08 and the Lakers won it in seven games two years later.

In the lone meeting in Boston last season, Kobe Bryant scored 23 and Pau Gasol finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds in a 92-86 victory Feb. 10. Eleven days earlier at Staples Center, Paul Pierce scored 32 and Kevin Garnett had 18 points and 13 boards to withstand a 41-point performance from Bryant in a 109-96 victory. That was the Celtics’ third victory in four regular-season games versus the Lakers at Staples Center.

Bryant and Pierce each got a significant accomplishment out of the way before Thursday’s showdown.

Though Bryant passed Shaquille O’Neal for fifth place on the NBA’s career scoring list with 28,601, he missed nine of 10 shots in the fourth quarter Monday at Philadelphia and scored only four of his 28 points after halftime in a 95-90 loss.

Two days earlier, the Lakers were tied at Utah entering the fourth only to lose 96-87.

“I don’t think we need to change much,” forward Metta World Peace said. “We have the guys to finish the games. Right now there is not a lot of consistency, so once we start playing with a little more consistency, the play in the last quarter, we will win more consistently. We just have to stick with it.”

The Celtics have trailed for less than five minutes through all of their fourth quarters during the five-game win streak.

Pierce finished with 15 points in Tuesday’s 94-84 victory over Charlotte to overtake Larry Bird for No. 2 on Boston’s all-time scoring list. Pierce reached the milestone early in the third quarter and now has 21,797 points, six more than Bird.

“It was a relief,” said Pierce, averaging 22.6 points and 7.4 assists in the last 10 games. “So much was hanging over me the last couple of days. Just hearing about it and knowing that you’ve got a game to play.”

A key for Boston could be keeping Los Angeles from getting extra possessions on rebounds. While the Celtics are one of the league’s worst rebounding teams at 38.8 per game, the Lakers are among the best at 44.8.

Gasol has three straight double-doubles, grabbing 44 boards in that span with 12 coming on offense. Eight of Bynum’s 20 rebounds Monday came at the offensive end as he posted a fourth consecutive double-double, averaging 20.8 points and 13.3 boards in that span.

SEASON & SERIES NOTES; CONNECTIONS
The Lakers split their last two season series with the Celtics 1-1, after sweeping the
2008-09 series with Boston 2-0. The two teams have met 183 times since the Lakers
moved to Los Angeles prior to the 1960-61 season with Los Angeles trailing the series
84-99. Including their time in Minneapolis, the Lakers and Celtics have met 274 times
in all with Boston leading the all-time series 154-120. The Lakers are 6-4 against the
Celtics in their last 10 overall regular season meetings. In Boston, the Lakers are 6-4
in their last 10 regular season games at TD Garden, have won their last 3 straight
there and are 5-1 in their last six meetings in Boston. In Los Angeles, the Lakers are
7-5 all-time against the Celtics at STAPLES Center (regular season). In 24 career
regular season games against Boston including 21 starts, Kobe Bryant is averaging
25.4 points. Celtics forward Paul Pierce grew up in Southern California, attending
Inglewood High. Celtics center Chris Wilcox and Lakers guard Steve Blake were
teammates at the University of Maryland from 2000-02 and were both members of the
Terrapins 2002 NCAA Championship team. Celtics center Jermaine O’Neal was
teammates with Metta World Peace from 2002-06 and Troy Murphy from 2007-08 as
members of the Indiana Pacers. Losing to the Celtics in six games during the 2008
NBA Finals, the Lakers defeated the Celtics in the 2010 NBA Finals in what was the
two teams’ 12th NBA Finals meeting dating back to Minneapolis in 1959. The Lakers
are 3-9 in NBA Finals series against Boston, with the Celtics taking the first eight
before Los Angeles won three of the last four in 1985, 1987 and 2010.

BRYANT PASSES SHAQUILLE O’NEAL FOR 5th ON NBA’S ALL-TIME SCORING LIST
With a 23-foot jumper at the 5:08 mark in the second quarter 2/6 at Philadelphia, Kobe Bryant moved past Shaquille O’Neal (28,596) for fifth on the NBA’s all-time scoring
list. Last season, Kobe Bryant moved past Hall-of-Famers Moses Malone (27,409) 3/8/11 at Atlanta, Elvin Hayes (27,313) 2/27/11 at Oklahoma City, Hakeem Olajuwon
(26,946) 1/28/11 vs. Sacramento, Oscar Robertson (26,710) 1/7/11 vs. New Orleans, Dominique Wilkins (26,668) 1/4/11 vs. Detroit and John Havlicek (26,395) 12/10/10 at
Chicago on the NBA’s all-time scoring list. Next on the all-time list ahead of Bryant (28,601) are Wilt Chamberlain (4th/31,419), Michael Jordan (3rd/32,292), Karl Malone
(2nd/36,928) and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1st/38,387). Among the top six scorers in NBA history, five have worn the Lakers uniform.

Bryant has been steadily moving up the list over the past few years. In 2009-10, he passed Alex English (25,613), Reggie Miller (25,279), Jerry West (25,192), Patrick
Ewing (24,815) and Allen Iverson (24,368). In passing West with a slam dunk at the 4:14 mark of the third quarter February 1, 2010 at Memphis, finishing the game with 44
points (West’s retired number), Bryant became the leading scorer in Lakers franchise history. In 2008-09, Bryant passed Gary Payton (21,813) and Hall-of-Famers Charles
Barkley (23,757), Robert Parish (23,334), Adrian Dantley (23,177), Elgin Baylor (23,149), Clyde Drexler (22,195) and Larry Bird (21,791).

BYNUM RECORDS SECOND CAREER 20-20 GAME
On February 6th at Philadelphia, Andrew Bynum totaled 20 points (8-13 FG) and 20 rebounds, marking his second career 20-point, 20-rebound game (3rd career 20+
rebound game). Bynum’s other 20-20 game came earlier this season on January 3rd, when Bynum totaled 21 points (8-15 FG) and 22 rebounds as the Lakers defeated
the Houston Rockets 108-99 at STAPLES Center, becoming the youngest Laker to do so (24 years, 68 days) since Rudy LaRuso tallied 30 points and 21 rebounds on
February 26, 1961 at the age of 23 years, 107 days. Bynum’s only other 20+ rebound game came on 4/5/11 vs. Utah, when he grabbed a career-high 23 rebounds. The
last Laker to record a 20-20 game prior to Bynum was Pau Gasol, who posted 30 points and 20 rebounds on February 16, 2011 at Cleveland.

DOMINATING THE GLASS, BUT LOSING THE GAME
In the Lakers 95-90 loss at Philadelphia on February 6, the Lakers out-rebounded the 76ers 55-30, marking the first time the Lakers lost despite out-rebounding their
opponent by 25-plus rebounds since they out-rebounded New Jersey 55-28 in a 109-103 loss to the Nets at STAPLES Center on 1/28/05. The last time any team lost
when out-rebounding their opponent by 25-plus rebounds occurred on 3/11/09 at Detroit, when the Pistons out-rebounded New York 64-39, but fell to the Knicks 116-111.

BRYANT NAMED KIA NBA WESTERN CONFERENCE PLAYER OF THE MONTH
On February 3
rd
Kobe Bryant was named Western Conference Player of the Month for games played in December and January. The award is Bryant’s 14th Western Conf.
Player of the Month honor and 15th Player of the Month award overall. Bryant was also named NBA Player of the Month for December of 2000, a year before the award
was divided into Eastern and Western Conferences for the 2001-02 season. Bryant has won multiple Player of the Month awards in a single season four times (2005-06,
2006-07, 2007-08, 2008-09). Bryant’s previous Western Conference Player of the Month awards came in March 2011, December 2009, January 2009, December 2008,
April 2008, February 2008, March of 2007, December 2006, April 2006, January 2006, March 2004, January 2003 and November 2001.

Bryant averaged a league-high 30.0 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.4 assists. On January 1
st
at Denver, Bryant became the youngest player in NBA history to score 28,000
points. In a victory over Phoenix on January 10
th
, Bryant scored an NBA season-high 48 points, kicking off four straight 40+ point games over a five night span. Bryant
also achieved a couple of Lakers milestones, surpassing Jerry West as the Lakers franchise leader in free throws made on January 28
th
at Milwaukee, then one night later,
passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the franchise leader in field goals made in a win at Minnesota.

GONE FOR THE GRAMMY’S
On Thursday, February 2nd, the Lakers headed to Denver, embarking on their annual Grammy’s Trip. Since STAPLES Center opened prior to the 1999-2000 season, the venue has been host to the Grammy Awards each winter, with the exception of the 2003 Grammy Awards, which were held at Madison Square Garden

KOBE BRYANT AND ANDREW BYNUM VOTED ALL-STAR STARTERS
IN 2012 NBA ALL-STAR BALLOTING PRESENTED BY SPRINT
On February 2nd, the NBA announced that Kobe Bryant is this year’s leading vote-getter in the Western Conference in the 2012 All-Star Balloting program presented by
Sprint with 1,555,479 votes, ranking second league-wide behind Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard (1,600,390). This marks Bryant’s 14th consecutive All-Star
selection, matching Jerry West, Karl Malone and Shaquille O’Neal as the only players in NBA history to be selected that many times consecutively (14 times each). In
league history, only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (19), O’Neal (15), Michael Jordan (14), Malone (14) and West (14) have had as many or more NBA All-Star selections. Andrew
Bynum, a first-time All-Star and now the 29th Laker in franchise history to be named to an All-Star team, led all Western Conference centers with 1,051,945 votes. Pau
Gasol (470,353), who made his fourth All-Star team last season as a reserve (2006, 2009, 2010, 2011), finished 3rd among forwards in the West behind Kevin Durant
(1,345,566) and Blake Griffin (876,451). Chris Paul (1,138,743) will start at guard alongside Bryant in the West. Starting alongside Howard in the East are LeBron James
(1,360,680) and Carmelo Anthony (1,041,290) at forward and Derrick Rose (1,514,723) and Dwyane Wade (1,334,223) in the backcourt.

This marks the fifth straight season that Bryant has led the Western Conference in all-star balloting. Last season, Bryant, who was the youngest All-Star in NBA history in
1998, received 2,380,016 votes to lead all players in balloting, the second time in his career he has done so (2003). In 2009-10, Bryant received 2,456,224 votes, finishing
second overall to Cleveland’s LeBron James (2,549,693). In 2008-09, he accumulated 2,805,397 votes, finishing third in overall balloting behind Dwight Howard
(3,150,181) and James (2,940,823). In 2007-08, Bryant garnered 2,004,940 votes to finish fourth in overall voting behind Kevin Garnett (2,399,148), James (2,108,831)
and Howard (2,066,991). In 2006-07, when he earned his second All-Star MVP, Bryant finished third overall in balloting behind James and Yao Ming. A four-time All-Star
MVP (2002 Philadelphia, 2007 Las Vegas, 2009 Phoenix, 2011 Los Angeles), Bryant is now a 14-time All-Star and had started 11 consecutive All-Star games before
missing the 2009-10 contest due to a sprained left ankle.

LAW-ABIDING CITIZENS
Leading for all but 26 seconds of their January 29th victory at Minnesota, the Lakers managed their second road win of the season despite not recording a single steal for
only the second time in franchise history. The only other game in which the Lakers did not record a steal came in a January 7, 2005 victory over Houston (111-104). Since
the steals statistic began being compiled prior to the 1973-74 season, this was the 47th time a team has not recorded a single steal in a game. With the lack of steals, the
Lakers saw the Timberwolves match an opponent franchise record for fewest turnovers in a game (4), originally established in a 108-114 loss 114 loss 12/21/01 at Memphis.

BRYANT BECOMES FRANCHISE LEADER IN FREE THROWS
MADE & FIELD GOALS MADE ON BACK-TO-BACK NIGHTS
With a free throw at the 6:34 mark in the third quarter 1/28/12 at Milwaukee, Kobe Bryant surpassed Jerry West (7,160 FTM) as the Lakers franchise leader in free throws
made. The following night, on a driving reverse layup with 4:52 remaining in the first half 1/29/12 at Minnesota, Bryant passed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (9,935 FGM) as the
franchise leader in field goals made. Bryant now holds Lakers franchise records for points, field goals made and attempted, free throws made, three-point field goals made
and attempted, games played and minutes played while ranking second in steals and free throws attempted and third in assists.

THE CENTURY MARK
Having gone 7-6 over a 13-game span from 1/5 at Portland thru 1/28 at Milwaukee, the common denominator in each contest, win or lose, was that the Lakers scored fewer
than 100 points. The 13-game run of sub 100-point scoring games is the longest streak in franchise history since the introduction of the shot clock prior to the 1954-55
season. Prior to the aforementioned streak, the Lakers scored fewer than 100 points in 12 consecutive games during the 2003-04 season when Los Angeles went 12
games from 1/12/04 - 2/2/04 without hitting triple digits; the Lakers went 6-6 during the stretch of games, eventually scoring 111 points in a 111-106 overtime victory 2/4/04
at Cleveland. The Lakers finished that season with a 98.2 point per game scoring average while limiting their opponents to 94.3 points per game, ultimately winning the
West before falling to the Pistons in the 2004 NBA Finals. The 98.2 ppg scoring average is the lowest for a Lakers team in the Los Angeles era. In the shot clock era, only
the 1954-55 Lakers have averaged fewer points per game in a season (95.6 ppg). Additionally, the only other Lakers 10-game run without scoring at least 100 points in a
game came in 2002 (11/3/02 – 11/22/02), with the Lakers going 3-7 during that stretch.

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