DOWN? NOT THE LAKERS DESPITE DEFICIT, PLAYERS UPBEAT AS THEY PREPARE FOR MUST-WINS.

Byline: Howard Beck Staff Writer

EL SEGUNDO - It's almost the end of the three-peat as they know it, and the Lakers (with apologies to R.E.M.) feel fine.

Better than fine, in fact.

They are exhilarated, confident, relaxed, in ways that defy all reason, considering where they stand: down 3-2 in the conference finals, as precarious a position as they've faced in two years.

The mood was uncommonly light Wednesday afternoon as the Lakers wound down a brief practice, 16 hours after the Sacramento Kings pushed them to the brink with a 92-91 victory at Arco Arena.

On the court, a spirited scrimmage among the bench players. To the side, a frisky Shaquille O'Neal, lining up to take on Kobe Bryant one-on-one, baiting him with a crossover dribble, both men laughing.

Not a furrowed brow in sight.

By Friday night's Game 6, the Lakers might be the peppiest, happy-go-luckiest team ever to face elimination.

``I think everybody's spirits are pretty high,'' Kobe Bryant said. ``I don't see anybody walking around here with their head down. I think if you look around, everybody's pretty confident, everybody's excited about this challenge that we have lying ahead, and let's roll the ball out on Friday and see what's what.''

And isn't it just like the Lakers to say so? This is, after all, the team that two years ago survived elimination games in the first round and conference finals. That overcame an 0-1 deficit to the Philadelphia 76ers in last year's NBA Finals.

They have been through Kobe-Shaq feuds, tussles with their coach, injuries to their superstars and just about everything else on their way to back-to-back championships.

And though the Kings are arguably the best opponent they've faced in three years, the Lakers won't allow that they might be overmatched this time, that perhaps the Kings are just the better team.

``They've been better in three games,'' Rick Fox said. ``We've been better in two. So we plan to be better on Friday and have it all wash out on Sunday.''

Then Fox echoed the sentiments of Ron Harper, who two years ago, with the Lakers facing an all-or-nothing Game 5 against the Kings, all but guaranteed victory.

Said Fox, ``We're going to win on Friday and then we go up (to Sacramento) and deal with a seventh game.''

This is new territory for the Lakers, however. It's the first 3-2 deficit of the Phil Jackson era, the first time they'll be forced to win a Game 7 on the road, the first time the budding dynasty has appeared less than dynastic.

``I think were going to embrace it,'' O'Neal said. ``We have to win two in a row.''

The Lakers' unwavering confidence is rooted not only in the last two championship runs but the last two games.

They have won five of the last seven quarters in this series and were within one Mike Bibby jumper (or, one Bryant miss) of a victory Tuesday night. O'Neal has been active and at times overpowering the last two games, going for 55 points on .575 shooting. And in the Lakers' view, the Game 5 loss was not so much a reflection on their play as it was on the officiating.

O'Neal fouled out in 32 minutes and had just one free-throw attempt. Bryant, the Lakers say, was fouled by Bobby Jackson on the final play. And then there was the ball obviously knocked out of bounds by Chris Webber that was ruled instead to have bounced off Robert Horry. Had possession gone to the Lakers, as it should have, Bibby never gets to take the game-winner.

So, yes, the Lakers feel good.

``Because the TV doesn't lie,'' Horry said. ``Video doesn't lie. You can see certain things that should have been our way. Same way (the Kings) felt about my shot (in Game 4). They snuck one, we snuck one. So we're even.''

More reasons for encouragement: After shooting 40 percent or worse in Games 2, 3 and 4, the Lakers shot 44.9 percent Tuesday at Arco. After all the lousy first quarters, they won the opening frame of Game 5 33-27. After all the late-game deficits, they actually took a one-point lead into the final period of Game 5.

``All those things bode well for a basketball club,'' Jackson said. ``We looked at the game and felt like we outplayed them again.''

``We feel good about where we're at right now,'' he said. ``We feel like elimination is not the best place to live, but the way we're playing the game, we feel good about how were playing. We wish we could play today, actually.''

LAKERS vs. KINGS

Game 6: Friday

at Staples Center, 6:30 p.m., Ch. 4

THE LAST TIME

--The last time the Lakers faced elimination in the playoffs: Defeated Portland in the seventh game of the Western Conference finals in 1999-2000, the year this group won the first of its two titles.

--The last time the Lakers lost a playoff series: Against San Antonio (4-0) in the second round of the 1998-99 postseason.

--The last time L.A. lost to Sacramento in a playoff series: Never.

--The last time the Lakers franchise lost to the Kings franchise: In 1950-51, when the Lakers were in Minneapolis and the Kings - then the Royals - were in Rochester. The Royals beat the Lakers 3-1 in the Western Division finals and went on to win the franchise's only title.

--The Last time the Lakers lost a series 4-2: Against San Antonio in the second round of the 1994-95 postseason.

CAPTION(S):

photo, 2 boxes

Photo:

(color) no caption (Shaquille O'Neal)

Box:

(1) LAKERS vs. KINGS (see text)

(2) THE LAST TIME (see text)