Hornets-Lakers Preview

By MATT BECKER
Posted Mar 30 2012 5:08PM

Kobe Bryant pointed to transition defense as the biggest reason the Los Angeles Lakers were unable to slow down the Western Conference's top team last time out.

The Pacific Division-leading Lakers should have better luck in that department Saturday night against an offensively challenged New Orleans Hornets team that will likely be shorthanded.

Facing high-powered Oklahoma City on Thursday, Los Angeles (31-20) allowed the Thunder to score 25 fast-break points in a 102-93 loss. Oklahoma City, one of the league's highest-scoring teams, got 12 of those fast-break points in the third quarter when the Lakers were outscored 34-19.

"It's just the transition baskets and giving them opportunities that hurt us," Bryant said.

While Los Angeles struggled to keep Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant in check, it doesn't seem like it should have as much trouble containing New Orleans.

The Hornets (13-38), who are one of the league's worst scoring teams at 89.2 points per game, are last in fast-break scoring at 8.9 per game. Making matters worse, New Orleans could be without three of its top five scorers in Jarrett Jack (sprained right ankle), who averages a team-best 15.6 points, Chris Kaman (flu) and Trevor Ariza (sore right ankle). Kaman, who averages 13.3 points, has been sidelined for four straight games, while Ariza, averaging 11.0 points, has missed three of four.

The Hornets, led by Jack's 30 points, took the Lakers to overtime in their lone meeting March 14 at New Orleans Arena, but Los Angeles was coming off a double-overtime win in Memphis the night before and fatigue could have been a factor. Bryant finished with 33 points, while Andrew Bynum added 25 and 18 rebounds to lead the Lakers to their fifth straight win in the series and eighth in nine games.

Bynum is coming off an encouraging performance against Oklahoma City finishing with 25 points and 13 rebounds for his first double-double in six games. The All-Star center, who is tied for third in the league with 32 double-doubles, seemed to be motivated from being benched for the final nine minutes of Tuesday's win over Golden State.

While Bynum could be turning the corner, Bryant had another rough night. He ended with 23 points on 7-of-25 shooting - the fifth time in seven games he shot less than 39.0 percent.

That typically spells trouble for the Lakers, who are 7-11 when he shoots 39.0 percent or less compared to 24-9 when he eclipses that mark. The 14-time All-Star has shot better than 43.3 percent in each of his last 10 games against the Hornets.

New Orleans arrives in Los Angeles to conclude a four-game road trip after Thursday's 99-93 loss to Portland, its third in four games. Marco Belinelli had 27 points and Carl Landry scored 24 for the Hornets, who had eight players available for the game.

"My guys fought and that's all you can ask," coach Monty Williams said. "We've got eight guys going up against a talented team and it goes down to the wire, there's not much you can say about your team. We had a chance to win and just didn't pull it out when we needed it."

Belinelli, who averages 11.8 points, and Landry, who averages 12.5, are each coming off back-to-back 20 point performances.

Lakers beat Hornets 88-85 on Bryant's late 3

By BETH HARRIS
Posted Mar 31 2012 7:18PM

LOS ANGELES (AP) As long as there's time left on the clock, Kobe Bryant can still work wonders even when he's having a horrible game.

Bryant burnished his reputation as one of the NBA's greatest closers, hitting a 3-pointer with 20 seconds left after missing his first 15 shots, to help the Los Angeles Lakers hold off the last-place New Orleans Hornets 88-85 on Saturday.

"There's always time to redeem himself," Jarrett Jack of the Hornets said. "Nobody's even going to talk about those first three quarters. They're going to talk about that last shot he made to put his team over the top."

It was just the third field goal of the game for Bryant, who finished with 11 points on 3 of 21 shooting as the Lakers ended a two-game skid at home.

"Kobe never gets down on himself," Andrew Bynum said.

Pau Gasol had 21 points and 11 rebounds, and Bynum added 19 points and 10 rebounds, while Ramon Sessions had 10 points and 10 assists for the Lakers.

Bryant was 0 for 7 on 3-pointers before making his only one. He had five assists, three rebounds and four fouls in 39 minutes. He endured the worst start to a game in his career, having previously missed his first 13 shots against San Antonio on Dec. 28, 2010.

"I'm stubborn. You have to have that kind of attitude, that kind of determination or stubbornness," Bryant said. "That's what gets teams over the hump to win multiple championships.

"If I were to miss that shot, everybody would have killed me."

Jack had 18 points and 10 assists playing with a sprained right ankle for the Hornets, but he missed a go-ahead bank shot with 4.9 seconds left.

"I just played it off the glass wrong," he said. "I got to the spot I wanted and we got the matchup we wanted. I was expecting Bryant to come over as well. I just shot it off the glass a little too hard, but we got exactly to where we wanted to be."

Jason Smith added 17 points and 10 rebounds, and former Clipper Al-Farouq Aminu had 10 points for the Hornets, who lost while playing their second straight game with just eight players available because of injuries. Trevor Ariza, Carl Landry, and Chris Kaman all sat out, while new father Gustavo Ayon and Emeka Okafor weren't with the team.

"It's tough to go against the Lakers with only eight guys, but everybody on our team hung together," Smith said.

The Lakers' anemic bench still got outscored by the Hornets' three reserves, 26-19. As a team, the Lakers went 32 of 77 from the floor, playing poorly for much of the game until being rescued by Bryant's late heroics.

"New Orleans came out as the undermanned team and we took them lightly," Sessions said.

The Lakers trailed 75-65 before he hit a 17-foot jumper over Marco Belinelli with 7:52 remaining for his first field goal.

Bryant followed on the next possession with a fadeaway jumper and got fouled, making the free throw to get his team within seven after sitting out the first four minutes of the fourth.

"Fatigue might have something to do with it," Bryant said of his struggles, "but I had good shots, good shots out of the rhythm of the offense, but none of them went down. You have to be patient and just focus on the last quarter and focus on getting some good shots."

Bryant stepped to the line with 58 seconds left after Jack was called for a blocking foul. He made the first and missed the second, leaving the Lakers trailing 85-83 and the fans in agony. Their voices rose in a cheer when he finally made his first basket after groaning on his earlier misses.

"I have a great team here and a lot of support and I really pushed myself defensively to get after the guys," Bryant said. "Sometimes you have to sacrifice a little bit of the offense and the stamina that you have to defend because that's what we believe is going to get us to a championship."

Greivis Vasquez missed a 3-pointer with 31 seconds to go, setting up another signature closing moment by Bryant that Jack couldn't defend.

"He hadn't been shooting the ball well all game, so I figured he would try to get to the basket, but he pulled up," Jack said. "I tried to contest it as best I could, but he hit a tough shot."

Bryant was 0 for 7 in the first half, missing four 3-pointers while dishing out five assists.

The Lakers opened the game on a 20-6 run before New Orleans scored the final eight points to trail 20-14. Steve Blake sparked the Lakers' bench with three 3-pointers in the second while Matt Barnes scored four in a row to extend their lead to 41-30. But the Hornets closed with a 9-2 run and trailed 43-39 at halftime.

NOTES: The Hornets have held 40 of their first 52 opponents under 100 points. ... Before the game, Bryant met with Lakers fan Allene Wynn of suburban Pacoima, fulfilling the 104-year-old woman's wish. She attended as a guest of the team and pulled no punches with Bryant, telling him, "You need to play better." ... The Lakers played their first non-holiday home game on a Saturday in the regular season since Jan. 17, 2004. ... The Lakers are 2-0 against the Hornets this season, having rallied from 17 points down on the road to win 107-101 in overtime earlier this month.

Notebook: Lakers 88, Hornets 85

Posted Saturday March 31, 2012 7:06PM

By Melanie Neff, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Kobe Bryant made only three shots Saturday, but his third was the biggest -- a go-ahead 3-pointer with 20.2 left in the game that helped lead the Lakers to an 88-85 victory over the Hornets at Staples Center. It was a game the Lakers should have won easily, playing against a Hornets team with only eight players.

Bryant, who missed his first 15 shots and finished 3-for-21 from the field, gave the Lakers their first lead since the 4:45 mark in the third quarter with his 3-pointer. It was Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum who kept the Lakers in the game, scoring 21 and 19 points, respectively, but it was their defense in the closing minutes that sealed the victory. Bynum blocked two shots and Gasol one in the final 4:09 to keep the Lakers close, before they closed out the final 1:28 with an 8-0 run. Both big men recorded double-doubles for the Lakers, with Gasol pulling down 11 rebounds and Bynum grabbing 10. Not to be outdone, Ramon Sessions had 10 points and 10 assists, as the the Lakers improved to 32-20 and 21-5 at home.

The Hornets, playing without starters Chris Kaman, Eric Gordon and Emeka Okafor, gave the Lakers all they could handle. Jarrett Jack, who was questionable before the game with a sprained ankle, stepped up for the Hornets, who have continued to play hard despite being plagued with injuries. Jack finished 18 points and 10 assists and Jason Smith added a double-double of his own with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Greivis Vasquez and Al-Farouq Aminu added 12 and 10 points, respectively. The loss drops the Hornets to 13-39 overall and 8-18 on the road.

QUOTABLE: "It was awful. The shots I was taking were good shots and makeable, but they just weren't going in. But the crowd had my back and I have great teammates to get us through it."
-- Kobe Bryant on his worst shooting performance in 14 years

THE STAT: Bryant was 0-for-7 from 3-point territory and 0-for-15 from the field before burying the go-ahead 3-pointer.

TURNING POINT: Bryant hit his first field goal of the game with 7:30 remaining that pulled the Lakers within eight at 75-67, and got the home crowd back into the game. The Lakers stepped up the defense at that point and slowly crept closer. Foul shots by Bynum and Bryant pulled them to within two at 85-83, before Bryant hit his back-breaking 3-pointer.

QUOTABLE II: "He is Kobe Bryant. He is going to find a way to score and he's going to will his team to win. He's an amazing, hall of fame player."
-- Jason Smith on Bryant's struggles

HOT: Gasol converted 8-for-14 from the field had 11 rebounds, three assists and two blocked shots. Gasol scored seven points in each of the first three quarters, keeping the offense alive while Bryant struggled.

NOT: Bryant missed 18 of 21 shots. The last time Bryant went scoreless for the first three quarters when he played more than 20 minutes, was March 28, 1998 against Utah. Bryant will be happy to see March disappear. He has seen his shooting percentage fall from a respectable 45.5% for the month of January to under 40% for March.

QUOTABLE III: "It's no surprise that we fight and give ourselves a chance to win. They played with class and guys were out there hobbling and limping around and still playing. The thing that is disappointing to me is we have got some guys on our team that could give us more but they are sitting there watching. That's the bottom line. It's hard to describe that in this day and age. I've got Jason Smith out there, knees hurting, hip, Lance [Thomas] with ice all over his body, Jarrett Jack has an ankle and they just give it up every night. Those eight guys made me a proud coach tonight."
-- Hornets coach Monty Williams on his team's injuries

GOOD MOVE: Lakers coach Mike Brown sat Bryant to start the fourth quarter, but brought him back in with 7:52 in the game. Bryant made his first shot of the game 22 seconds later.

NOTABLE: It was a much-needed win for the Lakers, who have lost three of their last five at home after starting the season 19-2 at the Staples Center. Losing to the last-place Hornets wouldn't have done much for the team's already wavering confidence. The victory keeps the Lakers one game ahead of the Clippers in the Pacific Division.

UP NEXT: For the Hornets, Sunday @ Phoenix, Wednesday vs. Denver, Friday @ San Antonio. For the Lakers, Sunday vs. Golden State, Tuesday vs. New Jersey, Wednesday @ Los Angeles Clippers.

• Hornets: Gordon
• Lakers: Eyenga

• Hornets: --
• Lakers: Blake

• Lead Changes: 5
• Times Tied: 2

• Arena: Staples Center, Los Angeles, CA
• Officials: #14 Ed Malloy, #29 Mark Lindsay, #59 Gary Zielinski
• Attendance: 18997
• Duration: 2:07