Lakers beat Mavericks 114-107 to go 13-1

LOS ANGELES (AP)—With every game the Los Angeles Lakers play, one nagging question keeps cropping up: How did they lose to the Detroit Pistons—at home?

Kobe Bryant scored a season-high 35 points, and the Lakers used a 17-0 run in the second half Friday night to beat the Dallas Mavericks 114-107 and improve the NBA’s best record to 13-1.

The Lakers matched the 2001-02 championship club for the best start after 14 games in the franchise’s 61-year history. That team won three more games before getting their second loss. Even the 1971-72 squad that won an NBA-record 33 consecutive games with Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West and Elgin Baylor lost three of their first nine before going on their historic winning streak.

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Lakers routed Nets 120-93 to maintain best record at 12-1

LOS ANGELES (AP)—When Pau Gasol made his Lakers debut back in February following his trade from the Memphis Grizzlies, he led Los Angeles to a 15-point victory at New Jersey on a night when Kobe Bryant had the lowest-scoring game of his MVP campaign.

Things looked eerily similar against the Nets on Tuesday night in the rematch at Staples Center. Gasol had 26 points and eight rebounds before sitting out the fourth quarter, and the defending Western Conference champions overcame Bryant’s shooting woes in a 120-93 rout that improved the NBA’s best record to 12-1.

Bryant had difficulty with Vince Carter’s defense, going 5-for-17 from the field in 28 minutes and finishing with 12 points in the Lakers’ fifth straight victory. He shot 1-for-9 in the first half and didn’t get to the free-throw line until 1:11 remained in the second quarter. The last time they met, the two-time scoring champion was outscored 27-6 by Carter and shot 3-for-13 with no free-throw attempts.

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Lakers are now 11-1 with win over Kings

LOS ANGELES (AP)—Double-digit scoring by eight Los Angeles Lakers camouflaged what nearly cost them a victory against the young and aggressive Sacramento Kings: sloppy ball handling and poor transition defense.

The Lakers committed 18 turnovers Sunday night, which the Kings converted into 30 points. But Kobe Bryant was good when he had to be, scoring 24 points and dishing out six assists to help the defending Western Conference champs beat the Kings 118-108 and improve the NBA’s best record to 11-1.

All five Lakers starters reached double figures in points by the third quarter, as they won for the fourth straight time since losing to Detroit at home. Andrew Bynum had 15 points and 10 rebounds, while Pau Gasol chipped in with 16 points.

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Lakers beat Nuggets again, 104-90

Yahoo Sports - November 22, 2008

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LOS ANGELES (AP)—Phil Jackson prefers when none of his starters has to play more than 34 minutes. Not only did he get his wish in the Lakers’ one-sided win over Denver, but none of them spent 30 minutes on the court—and they still kept Carmelo Anthony in check.

Kobe Bryant scored 11 of his 29 points in the third quarter before sitting out the fourth, Andrew Bynum had 13 points and 13 rebounds, and Los Angeles coasted to a 104-90 victory on Friday night.

The defending Western Conference champion Lakers (10-1) are off to their best start through 11 games since the 2001-02 championship season, when they won 16 of their first 17. All of their victories have been decided by seven or more points—which was their winning margin against four teams.

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Kobe, Vlad lead Lakers past Suns 105-92

By BOB BAUM, AP Sports Writer - November 21, 2008

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PHOENIX (AP)—Kobe Bryant had a below-average game. He’s got so much help on this Los Angeles Lakers team it didn’t matter.

Bryant scored 24 points, Vladimir Radmanovic made all five of his 3-pointers and a host of others made significant contributions to help the Lakers past the Phoenix Suns, 105-92 on Thursday night.

Bryant shot only 8-of-23, but the Lakers overwhelmed Phoenix with their depth. Six players reached double figures as Los Angeles improved its record to a league-best 9-1.

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Lakers rebounded from first loss with victory over Bulls

By JOHN NADEL, AP Sports Writer - November 19, 2008

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LOS ANGELES (AP)—The Los Angeles Lakers went to their inside game against the smaller Chicago Bulls. The strategy worked to perfection.

Pau Gasol scored 24 of his season-high 34 points in the first half, Andrew Bynum added 18 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots, and the Lakers rebounded from their first loss of the season with a 116-109 victory over the Bulls on Tuesday night.

“We wanted to go inside, and we did,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. “We just kept rolling. We had a size advantage.”

The Lakers scored 64 points in the paint, with Gasol shooting 14-of-21 and Bynum going 5-of-10.

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Pistons handed the Lakers its first loss

By KEN PETERS, AP Sports Writer - November 15, 2008

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LOS ANGELES (AP)—The new-look Detroit Pistons still have the Los Angeles Lakers’ number.

Rasheed Wallace had 25 points and 13 rebounds, Allen Iverson added 25 points and the Pistons handed the Lakers their first loss of the season, 106-95 Friday night.

The win was the Pistons’ eighth in the last 10 meetings.

Kobe Bryant scored 29 points for the Lakers, but went 12-of-30 from the floor.

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Lakers remain undefeated with win over Hornets

The Lakers are now the only undefeated team in the league following Atlanta's loss to Boston. Kobe Bryant scored 20 points, highlighted by a tough 3-pointer over James Posey with just over a minute left, and the Lakers improved to 7-0 with a 93-86 victory over the New Orleans Hornets.

Derek Fisher hit four 3-pointers and also finished with 20. He had 18 through the first three quarters, leading what to that point had been a dominant effort by Los Angeles, which never trailed.

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Lakers beat Mavericks on the road

By JAIME ARON, AP Sports Writer - November 12, 2008

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DALLAS (AP)—Down after one quarter, two and even three, the Los Angeles Lakers found themselves in an unfamiliar place.

Yet even with the Dallas Mavericks getting terrific games out of Jason Kidd and Erick Dampier, Kobe Bryant and friends found a way to pull out another one.

Trevor Ariza turned an offensive rebound into an emphatic, go-ahead dunk early in the fourth quarter and added an equally emphatic block in the final minute to help the Lakers pull out a 106-99 victory over the Mavericks on Tuesday night. Los Angeles improved to 6-0, its best start since going 7-0 in 2001-02—which also was the last time the Lakers won the championship.

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Lakers beat Rockets, 111-82, for its 5th straight win

By JOHN NADEL, AP Sports Writer - November 10, 2008

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LOS ANGELES (AP)—Shocking as it might sound, the Los Angeles Lakers broke out of a shooting slump Sunday night.

Shocking because they haven’t lost a game so far this season.

Kobe Bryant scored 23 points, Pau Gasol added 20 points, 15 rebounds and three blocked shots, and the Lakers shot 65.8 percent in the second half in a 111-82 victory over the Houston Rockets.

Jordan Farmar added 16 points and six assists, and Andrew Bynum had 13 points, seven rebounds and three blocks for the Lakers (5-0), who trailed by 16 points early in the second quarter.

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Lakers routed the Clippers again, 106-88

By JOHN NADEL, AP Sports Writer - November 6, 2008

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LOS ANGELES (AP)—The winless Los Angeles Clippers were giving the unbeaten Los Angeles Lakers all they could handle until they took a fourth-quarter lead.

Suddenly, the game turned.

Kobe Bryant scored 27 points, and the Lakers used a late 22-0 run to beat the Clippers 106-88 Wednesday night, giving them six straight wins over their crosstown rivals.

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Lakers beats Nuggets, 104-97, for its third straight win

By ARNIE STAPLETON, AP Sports Writer - November 2, 2008

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DENVER (AP)—This was not exactly the new look Carmelo Anthony was talking about.

Kobe Bryant scored 33 points and the Los Angeles Lakers nearly became the first team in three years to hold Anthony to single digits in a 104-97 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Saturday night.

Anthony, who declared last month, “You will see a different me,” this season thanks to a focus on defense, finally found his rhythm in the fourth quarter, but that’s when Bryant scored 14 points to fend off the fatigued Nuggets.

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