Bynum Scores Career High in Lakers Win Against Clippers
Andrew Bynum scored a career-high 42 points, Kobe Bryant had his second triple-double in their last three games and the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Clippers 108-97 Wednesday night.
Bryant, playing in pain two days after dislocating his right ring finger, scored 18 points, dished out 12 assists and grabbed 10 rebounds for his 16th career triple-double while Bynum had 15 rebounds and three block shots in helping the Lakers secure their 7th straight win against the Clippers and 14 of their last 15 overall.
Pau Gasol scored 10 points and Luke Walton, who returned to action after missing nine games because of an injured right foot, added 11 points. Lamar Odom contributed 19 points, nine rebounds, three block shots, off-the-bench.
Since the 1986-87 season, Bynum is the first Laker other than Shaquille O'Neal, to have a 40-point, 15-rebound game. Shaq did it seven times with Los Angeles. Bynum also became the first Lakers player to reach 40 points other than Bryant since Shaq scored 48 against Boston on March 21, 2003.
"If feels very good, to go out there and play the way I did," the 21-year-old center said. "I was able to get a lot of easy buckets. Kobe was Kobe Nash out there tonight. The ball was coming my way a lot. I was able to just get a lot of touches and get comfortable."
"I didn't know how many [points] I had, and that's just the truth," he said. "The fans were yelling for me to get 40. And then once I got the dunk, everybody was on their feet cheering."
The Lakers raised their record to a Western Conference-best 33-8 record at the halfway point of the season and earned Phil Jackson an All-Star coaching spot. He'll lead the West All-Stars on Feb. 15 in Phoenix.
The Clippers played without their four best players -- guard Baron Davis (bruised tailbone) and big men Chris Kaman (strained left arch), Zach Randolph (sore left knee) and Marcus Camby (sprained left ankle).
Rookie DeAndre Jordan, making his second career start, had career-high totals of 23 points and 12 rebounds for the injury-ravaged Clippers (9-32), who have lost 14 of 15. Al Thornton added 20 points and rookie Eric Gordon had 16 points and six assists.
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