THEY CATCH HORNETS FOR SEVENTH PLACE IN WEST LAKERS 113, N.O. 107.

Byline: Staff Writer

NEW ORLEANS - As much as Wednesday night's game was a homecoming for the New Orleans Hornets, playing in the first professional sports event in the city since Hurricane Katrina, it had a significance all its own to the Lakers.

There was simply too much at stake for the Lakers to get lost in the celebration at New Orleans Arena, as right as it felt, especially with seventh place in the Western Conference standings at stake.

If there was any doubt, assistant coach Brian Shaw spelled it out on the locker room white board before the game - ``They're in 7th, we're in 8th. Make Ground Tonite!'' - and the Lakers took care of things with a 113-107 victory.

They got 40 points from a relentless Kobe Bryant, who went into the fourth quarter having made just 5 of 22 shots, but found his jumper down the stretch of a tie game against the 5-foot-11 Speedy Claxton.

Bryant drilled three long jumpers in the final 2 1/2 minutes - bringing full circle a night in which one fan waved a ``Hurricane Kobe'' sign during player introductions - and guard Smush Parker picked Chris Paul's dribble from behind with 46.9 seconds left.

It was Bryant's fourth consecutive 40-point game and 19th of the season but came on a night in which he went 12 of 33 from the field. Bryant missed 7 of 8 shots in the third quarter but connected on 7 of 11 in the third and scored 18 points in the quarter.

``We just kept waiting for him to find something he could roll with, a rhythm that he could get his shot on,'' Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. ``He finally found it in our need situations.''

``I was upset because I was rushing a little bit because the double-team was coming,'' Bryant said. ``But I felt like I could elevate over (Claxton) and shoot it any time I wanted to''

How important was Wednesday's game to the Lakers? Forward Lamar Odom played the entire second half - finishing with 18 points, 17 rebound and six assists - and Bryant did likewise before checking out with 8.1 seconds left.

The Lakers (32-30) avenged a forgettable 106-90 loss to the Hornets last month in Oklahoma City and pulled into a tie with Hornets (31-29) for seventh place in the conference standings.

Parker, meanwhile, atoned for what could have been a big mistake late after he got caught in the air and threw a bail-out pass to forward Luke Walton that wound up out of bounds after Walton moved.

The game was tied 97-97 with 2:54 left as the Lakers headed into a timeout. They rotated the ball to Bryant for a 3-pointer as the superstar guard heated up, but Parker still knew he had to do something.

``I just felt I had to get that play back,'' Parker said. ``I knew I had to get it somewhere, a stop on defense or a steal.''

With the Lakers sitting in a zone, Paul tried to drive the middle and never saw Parker chasing from behind. Parker plucked the ball away and raced the other way before dishing to Odom for a dunk.

Parker stripped Claxton in the final minute as well and dunked at the other end. He finished with 16 points, seven assists and five steals, declaring that he ``went to work'' both on the court and earlier at a Habitat for Humanity home-building event.

Newly signed guard Jim Jackson also played four minutes in his Lakers' debut, knocking down a 24-footer as Bryant went to the bench at the start of the second quarter.

Before the game, Jackson talked about encouraging Odom to play a greater role, calling the 6-foot-10 forward the difference in the games the Lakers have won and saying he ``hasn't had the same kind of success'' in the games they have lost.

Ross Siler, [phone]

ross.siler(at)dailynews.com

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Photo:

(color) Kobe Bryant tries to shoot around New Orleans' P.J. Brown during the second half.

Alex Brandon/Associated Press