|
RECAP
|
BOX SCORE
|
GAME FLOW
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) -- Kobe Bryant was sick enough Thursday
to miss his third consecutive game with a viral infection. It was
difficult to tell by the way he played.
|  | | Los Angeles' Robert Horry slams as Detroit's Joe Smith is left out of position. |
Bryant scored 39 points, including 24 in the fourth quarter and
overtime, as the Los Angeles Lakers beat Jerry Stackhouse and the
Detroit Pistons 125-119 Thursday night.
"I had to play," Bryant said. "I was a little tired, but I
caught a bit of a second wind."
The Lakers overcame 46 points by Stackhouse, which tied the
Palace scoring record.
"I don't care about the record, I just wanted to win this
game," Stackhouse said. "It hurts to play this well and not get
the win. It has been like this all season, guys are always seeming
to hit big shots against us."
The victory was the Lakers' 13th in their last 14 games against
Detroit and their eighth in a row in the Palace.
The Lakers, led by 16 points by Bryant, overcame an 11-point
deficit in the fourth quarter and forced overtime.
Bryant dribbled the length of the court and hit a 5-footer with
2.3 seconds left in regulation to tie the game at 111.
"He's that type of player," Shaquille O'Neal said. "He caught
a hot hand, and we were able to win the game. That was lucky for
us, because no one else was making any shots."
After the teams traded jumpers at the start of overtime, Bryant
scored and Derek Fisher added a 3-pointer to put the Lakers ahead
118-113 with 2:27 to go.
Stackhouse converted a three-point play as Detroit closed to two, and then put the Pistons ahead with a 3-pointer.
Bryant responded with a jumper to give the Lakers the lead for
good.
After Stackhouse missed, Billy Owens and Robert Horry tied up
the rebound, and Los Angeles got possession.
Bryant hit two free throws to make it 122-119 with 10.6 seconds
to go, and Owens missed a tying 3-pointer. Horry made one of two
free throws and clinched the victory.
"I was supposed to get the ball to Jerry or Dana (Barros), but
Jerry had to go back to the backcourt to get the ball, and I had
guys running at me," said Owens, who has made just three
3-pointers this season. "So, I tried to fake Kobe and take the
shot, but it just didn't go in."
Chucky Atkins added 20 points for Detroit, while Ben Wallace had
12 points and 15 rebounds.
O'Neal added 26 points for Los Angeles, but scored only nine
after halftime.
Detroit led by as many as 10 points in the second quarter, but
Los Angeles narrowed the gap to 62-57 at the half. Stackhouse had
18 points for Detroit, while O'Neal had 17 for the Lakers.
Los Angeles closed to 66-65 early in the third on 3-pointers by
Fox and Bryant, but the Pistons responded with a 10-1 run.
Stackhouse finished with 13 points in the period, giving Detroit
a 90-79 lead going into the final quarter.
"I told the guys that it was only three quarters, and we still
had a lot of basketball to play," Bryant said. "What I have
learned being in the NBA is that it isn't what you do in the first
three quarters that matters. I just kept telling them that."
Los Angeles scored the first six points of the fourth, and
eventually cut Detroit's lead to 94-91 with 6:21 to play.
O'Neal had been on the bench for the entire quarter, but came
back at that point and helped the Lakers tie the game at 98 with
3:43 left.
"The frustrating thing is that we let them get back into the
game with their second team on the floor," Pistons coach George
Irvine said. "When they took Shaq out, we gave Ben a rest, and
suddenly we couldn't get a defensive rebound to save our lives."
Game notes
The Pistons set season-highs for both points scored and
allowed. ... O'Neal is one of the holders of the Palace scoring
record of 46 points. He set the record while playing for Orlando.
Grant Hill tied the mark in 1999. ... Ben Wallace had his
team-leading 10th double-double. ... Stackhouse is averaging 34.2
points in Detroit's last six games. He needs to average 32.2 over
Detroit's last 17 games to finish with a 30-point scoring average.
 Send this story to a friend
|
|
ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
LA Lakers Clubhouse
Detroit Clubhouse
RECAPS
LA Lakers 125
Detroit 119
New York 88
Toronto 72
Seattle 108
Milwaukee 102
Dallas 103
Minnesota 83
Houston 108
New Jersey 106
Boston 105
Phoenix 101
|
