ORDER IS RESTORED LAKERS GET THEIR SPLIT AT STAPLES, EVEN SERIES LAKERS 98, PHIL. 89.

Byline: Howard Beck Staff Writer

About the time Ron Harper became an active player again, about the time Derek Fisher became a scoring threat again, and right around the moment when an army of Staples Center's feared redcoats escorted a fan wearing an Allen Iverson jersey right out of the building, the Lakers regained the look of authority and the balance of a defending champion.

It took extraordinary measures to reach that comfort zone Friday night, and some desperate measures just to puncture the Philadelphia 76ers' overdeveloped sense of survival.

But with a revived backcourt, an all-out defensive assault from Shaquille O'Neal and a dash of composure, the Lakers pulled out a 98-89 victory and tied the NBA Finals at 1-1.

And a 15-mph sigh of relief rushed through the building at the final buzzer.

``We got one,'' mused Rick Fox. ``And in our quest to win another championship, we have to get four.''

He was in midsentence when another reassuring thought hit him: ``Hey,'' he said, ``we can't get swept now.''

That didn't seem likely in any event, but with the series heading to Philadelphia for the next three games, the Lakers recognized Game 2 for the critical event it was.

``Yeah,'' admitted Shaquille O'Neal, ``I think it was a must-win. Now we just need to go to their place and get one or two games. I think we can do that.''

That it's 1-1 instead of a panicky 0-2 is testament to a Lakers effort that went nine players deep. Just about everyone called upon responded, right down to the gimpy-kneed, semiretired Harper, who came off the bench to hit a clutch shot in the waning moments.

Kobe Bryant more than doubled his Game 1 output, scoring a game-high 31 points to go with eight rebounds and six assists.

But it was O'Neal who set the tone, blocking eight shots and nearly recording the first quadruple-double in Finals history. He settled for 28 points, 20 rebounds and nine assists. O'Neal's assists and blocks tied his career playoff highs. His block total tied the NBA Finals record (shared with Bill Walton, Patrick Ewing and Hakeem Olajuwon), and fell one shy of the Lakers' playoff record (held by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar).

``Shaq was a dramatically better defensive player in this game,'' coach Phil Jackson said.

That effort sparked the rest of the Lakers defense, which held the 76ers to 39.1 percent shooting, and Iverson to 23 points on 10-for-29 shooting.

Which said nothing for the security guards who ushered an Iverson-jerseyed fan out of Staples Center in the fourth quarter, bringing cheers from the crowd. Meanwhile, the real Answer stuck around long enough to give the Lakers a scare or two.

But Iverson struggled to score against Fisher and Bryant and complained afterward about a lack of foul calls. He shot only four free throws and missed them all.

``I would hope he'll get a little more respect,'' said 76ers coach Larry Brown.

The Lakers' offensive resurgence was sparked by Fisher and Bryant, each of whom struggled in Game 1. Bryant found the gaps in the 76ers defense and made 11 of 23 field goals, and all eight of his free throws.

Fisher scored 14 points, picked off a pair of Eric Snow passes late in the third, and hit a critical 3-pointer down the stretch. At that point, he had outscored Iverson 10-9 in the second half. That was a huge turnaround from Wednesday, when Fisher couldn't stay in the game, went scoreless and watched Iverson score 48.

``Fish came out and held his head up and just went out and did his job,'' said Harper. ``He's a guy who knows his game.''

The Lakers had a 10-point lead late in the fourth and nearly squandered it. The 76ers attacked with a full-court trap that briefly flustered the Lakers and helped chop the lead to three points, 89-86, with less than three minutes to play.

But Fisher, who minutes earlier coughed up the ball in the backcourt, hit a 3-pointer with 2:09 to play to push the lead to 92-86. When Harper, inserted by Jackson simply to settle down the offense, hit a 9-foot jumper, the Lakers had an eight-point lead again.

``I think where we get in trouble, where a lot of teams got in trouble against Philadelphia, is trying to go for the dagger,'' Bryant said. ``That's been one of our trademarks the entire playoffs is going for the kill. What we have to realize is this team's not going to die.''

Philadelphia had its last lead early in the third, then played from behind for almost the entire second half. The 76ers trailed by as many as 13 points in the fourth and hurt their own cause with lousy free-throw shooting. They went 15 for 26 from the line and just 6 for 16 in the fourth quarter.

Both coaches suggested the energetic 76ers succumbed to fatigue.

``They ran a tough a challenge on Wednesday night, I think it sapped something out of their energy tonight,'' Jackson said.

As the game wound down, the intense emotions of a series that seems destined to go six or seven games seeped out. Bryant snapped at Brian Shaw. Then Iverson and Bryant jawed at each other.

``We scared them a little bit,'' Brown said.

``They wanted to win one game here, they got what they came here for,'' said Jackson. ``They're playing hard, they're going to play hard every game.''

CAPTION(S):

4 photos, 4 boxes

Photo:

(1) Horace Grant (54) and the Lakers pushed back against Dikembe Mutombo and Philadelphia in Game 2, tying the series 1-1.

John Lazar/Staff Photographer

(2) no caption (Shaquille O'Neal)

(3) no caption (Allen Iverson)

(4) no caption (June 9, 2001, Sports section)

Box: (1) THE HERO

(2) THE GOAT

(3) THE KEY

(4) GAME RECAP