http://www.dailynews.com/Stories/0,1...635047,00.html
Lakers can't digest 100-83 loss to Spurs
By Ross Siler , Staff Writer
There was Parmesan chicken in one tray, vegetable lasagna in another and ample quan ies of salad. A German chocolate cake and carrot cake rounded out the offerings in the visiting locker room at SBC Center on Tuesday night.
Too bad the positives ended at the postgame spread for the Lakers in the wake of an ugly 100-83 loss to the San Antonio Spurs before 18,797. Everything else just left a bad taste in their mouths.
"At least they fed us after the game,' Kobe Bryant said, bringing the Lakers full circle on a night in which Rudy Tomjanovich raved about the tacos served at dinner 11/2 hours before tipoff.
Instead of celebrating Derek Fisher's miracle 0.4-second shot as they did only eight months ago here in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals, the Lakers were left with four courses and little more.
They fell behind by 29 points in the second quarter, San Antonio matched a franchise record with 15 3-pointers and Bryant finished with just 17 points on 5 of 16 shooting, his streak of three consecutive 40-point games coming to an end.
The Spurs did what plantar fasciitis, a sprained shoulder and bruised thumb could not, and sent Bryant to the bench. He played only 35 minutes Tuesday, his fewest in the past 23 games.
"We didn't do much of anything right,' said Lamar Odom, who finished with 10 points and eight rebounds in 32 minutes. "Today was one of the worse games we've probably played the whole year.
"They just moved the ball. They just did what they wanted on the offensive end. Everybody was wide open. We just got our butts kicked pretty bad by one of the best teams in the league.'
The Spurs might not have been able to exorcise all the memories from Fisher's fling. But Coyote the mascot did body-slam a fan wearing a Bryant jersey in the first half and San Antonio flattened the Lakers on the court. That should have been good enough.
It was so bad that at one point in the second quarter, San Antonio had 18 assists to 1 for the Lakers. It was so bad that the Spurs led 56-32 at halftime with Tim Duncan and Tony Parker having combined for all of six points.
It was so bad that Bryant did not play in the fourth quarter and 37- year-old Tony Massenburg did. It was so bad that USC put up more points than the Lakers in the first half of the Orange Bowl.
"I thought it was a rude awakening,' said Tomjanovich, whose team had played its past six games at Staples Center and will face Dallas tonight.
The Spurs (26-7) improved to an NBA-best 15-1 at home. Bruce Bowen finished with a career-high 24 points, including five 3-pointers, and Brent Barry added 14 points with four 3-pointers off the bench. Duncan and Parker combined for just 14.
"We tried to take away some things and they had answers somewhere else,' Tomjanovich said. "They're a balanced team and they got a lot of veterans and everybody chipped in.'
The Lakers led once all night as Bryant hit a pair of free throws to open the game. But San Antonio tore apart the Lakers (16-13) after that, shooting 61.9 percent and connecting on six 3-pointers in taking a 32-18 lead after the first quarter.
San Antonio was at its machine- like best throughout the first half. On one possession, Bowen looked inside to Rasho Nesterovic, who held the ball just long enough for Bryant to come help on defense. Nesterovic then dumped a pass back to Bowen for a 3-pointer from the corner. The Spurs had assists on their first six baskets and 12 of 13 field goals in the quarter. Bowen, meanwhile, finished the quarter with three 3-pointers and 11 points.
"We just didn't do anything right defensively,' Odom said. "They were about to get whatever they wanted, whenever they wanted. It was a pretty easy game for them. I'm a little embarrassed but it happens.'
Ross Siler can be reached at (818) 713-3610.
The Spurs did what plantar fasciitis, a sprained shoulder and bruised thumb could not, and sent Bryant to the bench. He played only 35 minutes Tuesday, his fewest in the past 23 games.
ONLY 35 minutes? Tim Duncan is averaging 34.6 mpg this season and he's the leads the Spurs in mpg average.
I also liked the observation about Kobe doubling down on Rasho, leaving Bowen wide open. If that's not all-NBA First Team D, I don't know what is.
kobe now will eat with his coach but he would not with phil
Bon Appepe . Jackson would have made a snide comment about Southwestern Food in a "hick town".
Oh for the old rivalry!
MadDoc
I can't believe we fed the bas s. We should've given them a week-old loaf of HCF Bread and a bucket of warm tap water.
Do you think we would've still fed them if they had won? Do we feed all the teams?
Talk about hospitality.
Three words: free agent recruiting. Although LA probably has no one that we want, it's in your interest to provide some good hospitality to opposing players.I can't believe we fed the bas s.
The reference to the Coyote, for those who didn't see it:
The Coyote went to jump off a mini-trampoline, jump and elevate over a Laker fan standing on a mat, wearing a Kobe Jersey and hat...then dunk a basketball.
When the Coyote jumped, he just plowed into the Laker fan, a full-body shot, and then as the Kobe-fan lay there, the Coyote piled onto him like in wrestling, leading with an elbow to the chest area.
It was pretty humorous...but normal Coyote time-out humor.
Is Rudy T nuts?On Tue Jan 4, 2005 9:02 PM , LandsbergerRules wrote:
Rudy, on the other hand, loves three-pointers, as shown by this quote from the LA Times:
During a four-day break between games, Tomjanovich said he would take a long look at the Lakers' affinity for three-point shots. His conclusion before the start of Sunday's game? "It looks like it's fantastic," Tomjanovich said. "It's something you guys should get off of [criticizing] and start pumping that stuff up."
Good thinking.
Just in case we go nucking futs and decide to go after Luke Walton.
I bet Kobe did not eat a the cheeseburger and milkshake on the table.
No, and while Rudy may not win a le in LA(because of a lack of fitting talent more than anything else), within a coupld of years this Laker Team will be clutch and fearless from 3.
Rudy T creates clutch players...he totally changes the psychology of players that shoot threes to where they never have any fear of shooting them or of losing by shooting them...that's what he did with the Rockets, and guys like Mario Elie and Robert Horry became 3 point shooters...and some of the more clutch ones to ever play the game.
Rudy probably won't win a le, just like no one could win a le with that team, but LA will be a team people don't enjoy playing, in a couple of years. Bank on it.
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