Lakers find renewed energy, defeat Kings
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| The Los Angeles Lakers’ Kobe Bryant shoots between the Sacramento Kings’ Jason Thompson (left) and Spencer Hawes during Tuesday’s game. (MCT photo by Carl Costas/Sacramento Bee) |
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (MCT) — Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson doesn’t necessarily like the term “killer instinct” because of its negative connotation.
But he is eager to see more of that hard edge from the Lakers as the postseason nears.
The Lakers have made it a habit to ease up with leads this season, creating risky late-game situations or outright losses. They did well for a change Tuesday night to hold off the Sacramento Kings pretty comfortably, winning, 106-99. It was the Lakers’ third consecutive road victory since they lost four consecutive road games, and afterward Kobe Bryant noted the improved energy from the team and said: “That’s a big step.”
Jackson, who puts a lot of stock in a team’s road performance in evaluating its championship aspirations, pointed to the five-game trip that starts March 24 as the one that “tells us if we’re going to reach that 60-win mark.”
The Lakers nearly blew an 11-point lead in the final minutes Monday night at Golden State in large part because of Bryant’s faulty decision-making.
But this time they were much sharper — getting a much-needed bench boost from Sasha Vujacic in the second half.
Bryant didn’t shoot well from the field (10-for-26) or the foul line (8-for-14) but did produce 30 points, nine rebounds and seven assists.
Had Bryant gotten one more rebound to go with what Pau Gasol (28 points, 12 rebounds) and Andrew Bynum (21 points, 12 rebounds) did, it would’ve been the first time three Lakers had 20-point, 10-rebound games since Feb. 21, 1984.
Bryant vowed to cut down on his turnovers after nine Monday night and had just two Tuesday night until a throwaway in the final seconds. The final seven-point differential was as close as Sacramento got the entire fourth quarter.
The Lakers stayed four games ahead of Denver for the best record in the Western Conference. Although the Lakers trail Cleveland by three games for possible NBA Finals home-court advantage, Jackson said they also want to stay ahead of Orlando, which trails the Lakers by three games.
