LOS ANGELES -- Their reason for dropping four-regular season contests to last-place teams: the games were meaningless. The excuse given for finishing second in the Pacific Division: they were bored. Kobe Bryant's response, when it was suggested that the Lakers were maybe a bit too cocky going into the conference finals against the Sacramento Kings:

"We're not bored now."

Just like the effects of a morning cup of hot coffee, the Lakers received a jolt in being manhandled during Friday's 103-90 loss to the Kings at Staples Center. And just like a skilled boxer that's been floor by an unexpected blow, the Lakers vow to dust themselves off and come out swinging for Sunday's Game 4.

"We're kind of angry,'' said Lakers' center Shaquille O'Neal after his team's practice on Saturday. "I'll be ready."

That Shaq is ready is not a problem, even though just five of his 20 points on Friday came after halftime as he was defended well by Kings' center Vlade Divac. The real problem is whether the rest of the Lakers will be ready.

Bryant had a game-high 22 points and led a furious fourth-quarter comeback, but just six of those points came over the first three quarters. Rick Fox (four points, one of nine from the field), Derek Fisher (four points, two of six from the field) and Robert Horry (eight points, three of eight from the field) all struggled which is why those three starters played a combined three minutes in the fourth quarter.

"Our other guys are going to have to fill in the gaps,'' Jackson said. "That's what they've done in other championships. It's a team effort, we want to make it a team effort.''

A team effort will be necessary of the Lakers want to become just the fifth team in NBA history to win three straight titles. The two straight losses are the first time since the conference finals against Portland in 2000 that the Lakers have dropped consecutive playoff games. The last time the Lakers trailed this late in the series: the 1999 conference semifinals, when San Antonio swept them.

Despite the big victory, the Kings are not satisfied. With a 5-0 record on the road during this year's playoffs, the Kings would like nothing more than apply more pressure on the Lakers in Game 4.

"We got a taste of blood," said Kings forward Chris Webber. "And it tastes good."

Even with the 2-1 series advantage, the Kings don't feel like they've played their best ball. Kings coach Rick Adelman was less concerned about the span of 45 seconds in the fourth quarter when the Lakers scored 14 straight points, then he was about his team not swinging the ball quickly to the weakside to get easy baskets.

"We're still not doing a lot of things that we've talked about," Adelman said.

They're doing enough in other areas to control the series. Divac played 38 minutes because he did a solid defensive job on Shaq. Webber's hit his jumpshots (26 points). Hedo Turkoglu (14 points) found his shooting touch, and guards Mike Bibby (24 points), Bobby Jackson (11 points) and Doug Christie (17 points) all played well. Should that continue and the Kings win on Sunday, they will have a 3-1 advantage in the series and create a hole that even the Lakers might not be able to escape.

"I really don't care about them," Divac said of the Lakers. "If we play our game and play 100 percent, we feel like we can win the series and the championship."

Jerry Bembry is general editor (NBA) at ESPN The Magazine. He can be reached at Jerry.Bembry@espnpub.com.