The Lakers came into Brooklyn on Tuesday to face a Nets team that was 12-4 over its last 16 games, and did so without the services of Dwight Howard, who was out again due to pain in his right shoulder, and Metta World Peace, who was serving a league-mandated one-game suspension for his actions against Brandon knight of the Pistons on Sunday.
None of that mattered to L.A., as they powered through the adversity for a 92-83 win that was the Lakers’ sixth victory in the team’s last seven games.
Only Brook Lopez, who will be representing the Nets in the All-Star game as an injury replacement for Rajon Rondo, did any real and consistent damage for Brooklyn, finishing with a game-high 30 points to go along with 11 rebounds. But it’s worth noting it took him 25 shots to get there.
Meanwhile, Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 21 points, eight rebounds, four assists, and four steals, but shot just 9-of-24 from the field while doing so.
The teams appeared evenly matched for the majority of the game, with Brooklyn struggling to create easy opportunities offensively. The officiating seemed to be in the Lakers’ favor, but more importantly, the ragtag lineup off the bench that L.A. threw out there while the starters got their rest produced unexpectedly, which helped the Lakers’ winning effort.
L.A. outscored Brooklyn 35-16 in the second quarter, thanks in large part to the job the bench lineup consisting of Steve Blake, Chris Duhon, Robert Sacre, and Jodie Meeks did to start the period, alongside starter Earl Clark. Somewhat surprisingly, the Nets bench couldn’t get anything going against these guys, and the Lakers regained control with the reserves, before the starters came back in to push the lead to double digits before settling for a nine-point lead at intermission.
The Nets went on a big 20-6 run that took up a large chunk of the third, after falling behind by 13 points to start the second half. The game was close throughout the fourth, before a layup from Bryant and a jumper from Clark with under two minutes remaining helped the Lakers pull away and seal the victory,
Pau Gasol left the game with 3:52 remaining in the fourth quarter with an injury to his right foot and did not return. The Lakers announced afterward that Gasol had a “plantar fascia strain,” and that he would have an MRI Wednesday in Boston to determine the extent of the injury.
Gasol said afterward that he heard a “pop,” and left the locker room on crutches.
As nice as it was to beat a Nets team that is eight games over .500 on their home floor, the season’s bigger picture is in serious jeopardy depending on the severity of Gasol’s injury. Already without Howard for an indefinite amount of time, the Lakers can’t afford to miss too many games with Gasol sidelined as well, especially given the hole they’ve dug for themselves in terms of simply trying to make the playoffs this season.
