MOMENTUM NOT ON THE ITINERARY LAKERS HEAD TO ROAD AFTER LOSING SECOND STRAIGHT.

Byline: ROSS SILER Staff Writer

With 6:40 left in the third quarter Sunday afternoon, Lakers coach Phil Jackson called a timeout in between two free throws by Manu Ginobili and delivered a message to his players about missed opportunities.

``I told them that they were screwing it up,'' Jackson said, ``and they were going to mess this game up if they didn't start taking advantage of it.''

For three-and-a-half quarters the Lakers were on their way to a season sweep of the San Antonio Spurs and a victory that would buoy them as they embark on an eight-game road trip beginning Tuesday.

Then they were watching Michael Finley sink a 3-pointer with 1.3 seconds left in overtime that gave the Spurs a 96-94 triumph, leaving the Lakers with a lesson about a 10-point lead that wasn't enough.

``You let San Antonio hang around long enough, and they can find a way to win,'' Jackson said. ``They showed us how to close.''

After taking a 67-57 lead into the fourth quarter, the Lakers went more than eight minutes without a basket and lost in overtime at home for the second consecutive game. This one left the Staples Center locker room quieter, Jackson said, than Friday's loss to Charlotte.

The difference Sunday was Finley's shot, coming on an afternoon in which he hit 5of10 3-pointers and scored 17 points. But Jackson could see the seeds of this loss already planted when he called timeout with the Lakers leading 52-46 in the third quarter.

Lamar Odom had just come up empty at the foul line for the Lakers, who made just 18of 31 free throws (58.1 percent). All Jackson could say afterward was that enough was enough.

``I told them we're not practicing them any more in practice,'' Jackson said. ``I'm sick and tired of taking 20 minutes out of practice to practice free throws when they're professional players. They have to do this on their own, this is their responsibility.''

The Lakers' cause was helped by the Spurs shooting 28.8 percent through three quarters. But San Antonio came alive in the fourth quarter.

Ginobili connected on two 3-pointers, and the Spurs tied the score with 1:19 remaining in regulation on two free throws by Tony Parker.

``You know what they're about,'' Kobe Bryant said. ``They're champions. You know they're just going to keep on playing. They're going to make a run. They're going to increase the intensity.

``Us as a young ballclub, we have to figure out how to sustain our intensity and even turn it up a notch, kind of tighten the vise on them a little bit.''

The Spurs went ahead 79-77 with 54.1 seconds left in regulation when Ginobili lobbed a pass to Tim Duncan, who immediately moved the ball to Bruce Bowen for a 3-pointer from the corner. Before that basket, Bowen had missed all six of his shot attempts.

Trailing 80-77 with 40 seconds to play in regulation, the Lakers still had an opening. Bryant drove on Bowen but missed a dunk. Andrew Bynum came up with the offensive rebound and found Vladimir Radmanovic, who tied the score with a 3-pointer.

After not playing a second in Friday's loss to Charlotte, Radmanovic was a surprise starter in place of Luke Walton, who was out with a sprained ankle. Radmanovic finished with 13 points in 35 minutes and hit the Lakers' biggest shot of the game.

The Lakers jumped to an 84-80 lead in overtime as Radmanovic and Bynum got dunks off passes from Bryant. But the Lakers couldn't hold on to the lead, even with Bryant drilling two jumpers in the last 1:01 over Bowen.

There was no debate for the Spurs about what to do late: They went after 19-year-old Bynum with Duncan, the former MVP center, and the player Bynum idolized growing up. Duncan drove for a layup with 20.1 seconds remaining in overtime to give the Spurs a 93-92 lead.

Bryant answered with a 20-footer for the last of his 31points with seven seconds left to give the Lakers their last lead, 94-93. That set up the final possession, with the Spurs inbounding the ball to Duncan and Odom facing a no-win decision.

In a split-second, Odom had to decide whether to help Bynum on Duncan or stay at home on Finley. He tried to do both before making a move at Duncan and leaving Finley open beyond the 3-point arc.

``What are you going to do?'' Odom said. ``It's Tim Duncan with the basketball.''

Duncan passed outside to Finley, who buried the shot from 28 feet.

The Lakers called timeout but couldn't inbound the ball to Bryant for a final shot, leaving Radmanovic with a desperation heave at the buzzer.

Ginobili and Duncan led the Spurs with 21 points each. Odom finished with 18 points but went 4 of 10 from the foul line in his second game back from a knee injury. The Lakers gave up 16 offensive rebounds and scored 13 points in the fourth quarter.

Afterward, the Lakers went home to pack for the road, where they have won 8 of 19 games. They will play threesets of back-to-back games on this trip, and Jackson doesn't want to see the Lakers stall at 10 games above .500.

``You just don't want to sit at that particular point and kind of cruise through this part of the year,'' Jackson said. ``You look at the road, if you can (be) .500 on the road, you're really happy about it.

``But we just can't be satisfied with that right now. We have to go on a road trip with a kind of (attitude), `Let's try to win six, let's try to push the limits of what we can do on this road trip.'''

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2 photos

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) NO EXTRA CREDIT

Lakers lose to Spurs on Finley's shot in OT

(2) Kobe Bryant pulls his jersey over his face after a call he disagreed with in the second half of Sunday's loss at Staples Center.

Edna T.Simpson/Daily News