UNBEATABLE? LAKERS PERFECTION PERSONIFIED IN SWEEP LAKERS 111, SAN ANTONIO 82.

Byline: Howard Beck Staff Writer

Wild hyperbole was exhausted several weeks ago, the cliches long ago went cold, and every manner of superlative had been all but worn out in a flurry of sweeps and routs and too-good-to-believe playmaking. This was all long before the Lakers came to Staples Center on Sunday to complete their latest memorable conquest.

Their play has bordered on perfection, their playoff record is perfection itself and still the Lakers found new ways to define domination and new methods for inspiring disbelief.

One more unfathomable rout of the San Antonio Spurs, 111-82. One more sweep for the NBA annals. One more trip to the NBA Finals.

The Lakers earned the right to defend their championship with a 4-0 sweep and now await the winner of the Eastern Conference finals, either Milwaukee or Philadelphia. Yet the opponent hardly seems relevant anymore.

Their victory Sunday brought the Lakers' winning streak to 19, second longest in franchise history. It improved their playoff record to 11-0, tying the 1988-89 Lakers for the best postseason start in NBA history.

And their four-game demolition of the Spurs, the league's best team in the regular season and champions in 1999, featured precious few moments of suspense.

All of which leaves just one nagging, intriguing question: Can anyone, anywhere beat the Lakers?

``Not this year,'' Rick Fox said. ``Right now we've raised our game continually. It's been an unbelievable start to what is not finished.''

Yet considering these Western Conference finals presumably pitted the two best teams in the league, the Finals come across as a mere formality, with the Lakers now eyeing a record-setting 15-0 run.

Already, they have dispatched with three 50-win teams in Portland, Sacramento and San Antonio, never once veering close to a loss.

``There's no doubt that it is a great sequence of series for us,'' coach Phil Jackson said. ``We talked about having to go through probably three of the best six teams in the league to get to this position.

``... We knew that we had to elevate our game, and the thing that's so impressive about the Lakers is they're improving game by game. And that, I think, is the trademark of a team that wants to win a championship, is that they refuse to play at a level, but elevate their level as they go through the playoffs.''

This series was by far their most impressive. The Lakers won by an average 22.2 points per game (103.5-81.3), the widest margin ever in a conference finals. They did it with a 207-150 advantage in rebounding, an average of 14.3 per game, despite facing the best big-man tandem in the league, Tim Duncan and David Robinson.

The Twin Towers went down meekly Sunday, combining for 27 points - one fewer than Derek Fisher scored. On a day when Shaquille O'Neal turned heads with a 3-on-1 fast break, and Kobe Bryant again broke down the Spurs defense, Fisher loomed largest, stepping forward for 28 points. The point guard made 6 of 7 attempts from 3-point range and 11 of 13 field goals overall, all career playoff highs.

O'Neal (26 points, 10 rebounds) and Bryant (24 points, career playoff- high 11 assists) carried the rest of the load in a game that never was in doubt. The Lakers jetted out to a 64-41 halftime lead and ``undermined their spirit,'' in Jackson's words.

``Some people were expecting (the series) to go seven (games),'' Bryant said, ``other people expected us to lose, and it felt good to prove those people wrong.''

The Spurs, looking like a team that left its confidence back at the Alamodome, never made a run. San Antonio's last lead in this series was at 76-75 in the fourth quarter of Game 2.

``Custer has no idea,'' said Spurs coach Gregg Popovich, whose team was outscored by 68 points over Games 3 and 4. ``That's my statement. Figure it out. Not too tough. ... That's a very good team that's playing really, really well. As well as I've seen any team play in a long time.''

The Lakers are undefeated and making it look effortless, and clearly enjoyable.

Witness Fisher, in the second quarter, driving around Duncan for an acrobatic layup, while getting knocked to the floor by Robinson. Witness the chants of ``Sweep! Sweep!'' that followed. Witness O'Neal leading the 3-on-1 break, dishing to Bryant, then getting it back for a right-handed jam and a 21-point lead moments later.

Easy. Too easy.

``We're doing our thing,'' Ron Harper said, ``and we're doing it very well. We're having fun.''

And making history along their merry way.

``This is just a tremendous thing to be a part of today,'' Fisher said, ``and hopefully, we can enjoy it for a couple of days and then start to focus our minds on what we're here to do.''

LAKERS vs. SAN ANTONIO

Lakers win best-of-seven series 4-0

GAME 1

LAKERS 104

SPURS 90

GAME 2

LAKERS 88

SPURS 81

GAME 3

LAKERS 111

SPURS 72

GAME 4

LAKERS 111

SPURS 82

11 DOWN, 4 TO GO

The Lakers are 11-0 in the playoffs, four shy of a perfect postseason.

DATE OPP. SCORE

First Round

--Apr. 22 Portland 106-93

--Apr. 26 Portland 106-88

--Apr. 29 Portland 99-86

Conf. Semifinals

--May 6 Sacramento 108-105

--May 8 Sacramento 96-90

--May 11 Sacramento 103-81

--May 13 Sacramento 119-113

Conf. Finals

--May 19 San Antonio. 104-90

--May 21 San Antonio. 88-81

--May 25 San Antonio. 111-72

--May 28 San Antonio. 111-82

CAPTION(S):

2 photos, 3 boxes

Photo:

(1 -- cover -- color) Shaquille O'Neal and Derek Fisher celebrate.

Tom Mendoza/Staff Photographer

(2) Kobe Bryant (8) runs into traffic during the Lakers' series-sweeping victory Sunday over San Antonio.

John McCoy/Staff Photographer

Box: (1) LAKERS vs. SAN ANTONIO (see text)

(2) 11 DOWN, 4 TO GO (see text)

(3) GAME RECAP