Text size: increase text sizedecrease text size
From Orlando Sentinel

LAKERS 117, MAGIC 113

Orlando Magic fall to Lakers despite point-heavy first quarter

A record 44-point first quarter not enough for Magic

Brian Schmitz | Sentinel Staff Writer
February 9, 2008

With Tiger Woods and comedian Chris Tucker in the audience to watch Kobe Bryant duel Dwight Howard, the game between the Orlando Magic and Los Angeles Lakers took on a playoff atmosphere on Friday night at Amway Arena.

And, fittingly, it came down to the final seconds -- Kobe time.

Bryant, who has been plagued by a sore right pinky, hit two free throws with a minute left to provide the Los Angeles Lakers with a 117-113 victory in front of a raucous sellout crowd.

Bryant didn't seem to let the finger bother him much, although he said it is sore enough that he is contemplating missing the Feb. 17 NBA All-Star Game. He was voted in as a starter for the Western Conference.

Kobe finished with 36 points -- plus 10 rebounds and six assists -- and newly acquiredPau Gasol had 30. Bryant also made 14 of 16 free throws.

The Magic placed seven players in double figures, with Dwight Howard leading the way with 19 points to go with 11 rebounds.

Point guardJameer Nelson, making his first start in 10 games, had 17 points and nine assists. Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis finished with 16 points, Mo Evans had 12 and Brian Cook and Keith Bogans each added 11.

"That was a rough loss, but that was an unbelievable basketball game," CoachStan Van Gundy said. "I thought out guys fought through a lot of things, a lot of adversity. We had foul trouble and we certainly made a lot of mistakes. But we found a way to stay in the game.

"I'd have liked to have seen our guys attack more at the end."

After Turkoglu's two free throws gave Orlando an 112-111 lead, Bryant drove and was fouled. He hit both free throws to give the Lakers (32-17) a 113-112 lead in which they never relinquished.

The Magic (32-20 ) missed five consecutive shots. Rashard Lewis had a chance to tie it with under 30 seconds left, but his shot was partially blocked byLamar Odom. Odom then was credited with a basket on the other end, when Howard was called for goal-tending.

The Magic knew they were going to have problems containing Bryant, but it was Gasol who gave them fits. Acquired last week from the MemphisGrizzlies, Gasol hit 12 of 15 shots.

Orlando certainly didn't finish the way it started.

The Magic made history in a whirlwind first quarter, scoring a club record 44 points. It was their biggest opening period since scoring 42 in 2002 against theHouston Rockets and 42 in 1994 against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

They also tied a team record for most 3-pointers made in a quarter with 8, matching records set in 2002 and 1995.

The Magic were 8-for-11 in 3-pointers, with Turkoglu, Mo Evans and Brian Cook hitting two each.

Orlando shot 75 percent from the field (18 of 24) to take a 44-33 lead, but the Lakers took over the game after that outburst with an equally impressive run.

L.A., with the new tag-team of Kobe and Pau, turned things around by blitzing Orlando 31-19 in the second period to take a 64-63 lead at halftime.

And the Lakers didn't stop there.

They pushed their lead to 11 at 78-67, meaning they had outscored the Magic 45-23 since the first quarter.

The Magic cut the lead to five, but the quarter was undermined when Howard picked up his fourth and fifth fouls 16 seconds apart.

Howard had to take a seat, and Bryant took over. He completed his second consecutive 3-point play to give the Lakers an 84-73 lead, then fed Gasol, who was fouled and completed another 3-point play for a 14-point lead.

The Magic crawled back on 3-pointers by Turkoglu and Keith Bogans, and finally got Kobe under control. Bogan's long-distance shot cut L.A.'s lead to 100-98 and Lewis' 3-pointer made it 102-101 midway through the final period.

The Magic face the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday night at Amway.


Pau Gasol loves being a Los Angeles Laker D5

Copyright © 2008, Orlando Sentinel

Hampton Roads Facts, Data and Statistics

Search restaurant inspections Search restaurant inspections
Property Transfers Database Property Transfers Database
Crime Database: JCC Crime Database: JCC

Blogs

Bacon's Rebellion - Op/Ed Blog for Virginia's New Economy Bacon's Rebellion - Op/Ed Blog for Virginia's New Economy
Pickerhead.com - Pickings from the Webvine Pickerhead.com - Pickings from the Webvine