'DISAPPOINTED ... AND IT SHOWED' LAKERS ROUTED BY KINGS IN KEY GAME FOR POSITIONING SACRAMENTO 102, LAKERS 85.Byline: Howard Beck Staff Writer SACRAMENTO - On a day Kobe Bryant Kobe Bean Bryant (born July 23 1978) is an American All-Star shooting guard in the National Basketball Association (NBA) who plays for the Los Angeles Lakers. either could not or would not shoot, the Lakers See Lake poets practically conceded the race for the Pacific Division title and further eroded e·rode v. e·rod·ed, e·rod·ing, e·rodes v.tr. 1. To wear (something) away by or as if by abrasion: Waves eroded the shore. 2. To eat into; corrode. their own sense of well-being as the playoffs approach. With just three days left in the regular season, a Sunday afternoon game against the Sacramento Kings stood as the most critical event on the calendar. It ended in a 102-85 rout by the Kings, and with a swell of curiosity surrounding the Lakers' increasingly enigmatic superstar, who turned in one of the worst performances of his eight-year career. Teammates and coaches were as puzzled as anyone else in the building as Bryant shot just once in the first half and 13 times in the game. He converted three times and scored eight points - his lowest total ever for a game in which he played 40 minutes. That the oddly passive performance came on the heels of a three-game stretch in which Bryant went 23 for 72 from the field - and took some heat from coaches and teammates for doing so - only raised the level of skepticism. That it came at Arco Arena Current arenas in the National Basketball Association Western Conference Eastern Conference , the site of countless heroic moments by Bryant, in a game that could decide the Lakers' playoff position, only made it more troubling to all involved. The loss left the Lakers (54-26) a game behind the Kings in the division, and fourth in the Western Conference, with two games to play. They were officially eliminated from contention for the No. 1 seed and slipped to fourth with San Antonio's 88-79 victory over the Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. Clippers on Sunday. Coach Phil Jackson
Philip Douglas "Phil" Jackson (born September 17, 1945 in Deer Lodge, Montana) is the current coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, an American professional basketball team. couldn't grasp what he'd just seen, and didn't want to try. ``I'm not going to answer any questions today, guys. I'm just extremely disappointed in the performance of a team in a key game like this, on an afternoon that we thought we wanted to play good basketball. There was a number of things that played into it, but we're disappointed in our performance and it showed.'' As Bryant receded from the offense, Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal (pronounced "shak-KEEL") (born March 6, 1972 in Newark, New Jersey), frequently referred to simply as Shaq, is an American professional basketball player, generally regarded as one of the most dominant in the National Basketball Association (NBA). was forced out of it by foul trouble, and the rest of the day was spent criticizing referees, questioning each other and, finally, saying nothing at all. The postgame team meeting was brief. ``There wasn't nothing but the Lord's Prayer,'' Bryon Russell Bryon Demetrise Russell (born December 31, 1970 in San Bernardino, California), is a former basketball player in the NBA. During a 12 season NBA career that spanned most of the 1990s and into 2005, he played for the Denver Nuggets, Washington Wizards and Los Angeles Lakers and was said, ``and we were out of there.'' O'Neal and Bryant, who combined for 61 points in Friday's victory over Memphis, combined for 18 against the Kings. It's the pair's lowest combined total since Bryant's rookie season. In a surprising bit of humility, Bryant credited the Kings for shutting him down, which according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. sports historians, was a career first. That Bryant even recognized such defensive grit underneath a Kings jersey is a bit like being the guy who saw Bigfoot. But surreal sur·re·al adj. 1. Having qualities attributed to or associated with surrealism: "Even with most facilities shut down ... was pretty much the norm Sunday. Bryant's only first-half shot was a 3-point attempt to beat the shot clock. ``I was just laying back, waiting for the flow of the game,'' Bryant said, smiling. ``They doubled me every time I touched the ball, every time I got into a scoring position In the sport of baseball, a baserunner is said to be in scoring position when he is on second or third base. The distinction between being on first base and second or third base is that a runner on first can usually only score if the batter hits an extra base hit, while a runner on , they doubled quickly. So I just moved the ball on, waiting for the game to kind of open up. It just didn't open up tonight. ... They came in with a strategy of not letting me even get a look at the basket.'' Asked if the Kings were the first team ever to do so, Bryant said, ``To this extreme, yeah. I'll be ready for them next time.'' O'Neal, often the first to grouse grouse, common name for a game bird of the colder parts of the Northern Hemisphere. There are about 18 species. Grouse are henlike terrestrial birds, protectively plumaged in shades of red, brown, and gray. when Bryant goes his own way, declined to enter the debate. ``We win as a team, we lose as a team, and I'm not going to let y'all try to start some Shaq-Kobe controversy today,'' he said. O'Neal was charged with two offensive fouls in a one-minute span, and after the second, he sulked across midcourt, taking the ball with him. Referee Dick Bavetta whistled a delay-of-game call. O'Neal snapped at Bavetta as he left the court, then snapped at Jackson when he reached the bench. ``Tough day,'' O'Neal said. ``We let them take us out of our game - 'them' not meaning the Kings. Tough day for me. I wanted to come out a little aggressive and they took control of the game from the first two fouls, and it was a different game for myself today.'' The Kings, it seemed, made less of an impression, though they won the season series for just the second time in 10 years. ``Not impressed, not (bleeping bleep n. A brief high-pitched sound, as from an electronic device. v. bleeped, bleep·ing, bleeps v.intr. To emit a bleep or bleeps. v.tr. ) impressed, not impressed,'' O'Neal said. ``You know what I mean? All right? OK.'' Howard Beck, (818) 713-3607 howard.beck(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): photo, 2 boxes Photo: Kobe Bryant's eight-point effort was his lowest ever for a game in which he played 40 minutes. Rich Pedroncelli/Associated Press Box: (1) GAME RECAP (2) PLAYOFF RACE |
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