Kobe Bryant needed 22 points to pass Shaquille O’Neal on the all-time scoring list and got them in the first 21 minutes. He looked like he was on his way to 50, a great way to celebrate his annual trip to his hometown.
The Lakers held a 55-30 advantage in rebounds. Andrew Bynum (20 points, 20 rebounds) and Pau Gasol (16 and 11) looked like they were playing against children.
And LA held a seven-point lead with less than five minutes to go and the best closer in the business ready to take over.
And the Philadelphia 76ers still won. Despite often looking undersized and overwhelmed, the Sixers closed the game with a 16-4 run for a 95-90 victory that continued the road woes of the Lakers.
Down the stretch, Lou Williams scored 11 points while Bryant scored two, rookie Nikola Vucevic scored as many points as Bynum and Gasol combined, and the Sixers simply wanted it more.
From Phil Sheridan of the Philadelphia Inquirer: “It is time to stop talking about measuring-stick opponents for these 76ers and just enjoy them for what they are: a very good young team with a great coach and a bright future. Are they threats to win the NBA title this year? Probably not, but neither are 80 percent of the teams in the league. Have they earned the right not to have every win graded on a curve determined by subtracting the quality of the opponent and dividing by the impact of the compressed schedule? Yes and hell yes. It should be enough, on a February Monday, to find the Wells Fargo Center packed with fans, many clad in Lakers gear and many more bellowing “Beat LA, beat LA” as if Iverson or Erving were in the Sixers huddle. It should be enough that they did just that. “That was an amazing win for us,” Doug Collins, the aforementioned great coach, said after his team stunned the Lakers with a late rally and a 95-90 win. “To hear the fans out there chanting, ‘Beat LA,’ took me back to 1980, when I was here as a player. That was pretty nice to hear.”
There is still plenty of schedule left, but so far, the only team Philadelphia has shown it cannot play with is Miami. In the last week, the Sixers have beaten the Magic, Bulls, Hawks and Lakers, with the Spurs and Clippers arriving later this week.
The Sixers won in their customary fashion. They valued the ball (four turnovers, one less than Bryant), spread the wealth (eight players had at least eight points) and got after it defensively, allowing 40 points after halftime as Andre Iguodala cooled off Bryant.
From John Mitchell of the Philadelphia Daily News: “Iguodala played a major role in holding Bryant to just four points on 2-for-12 shooting in the second half. Bryant, who surpassed O’Neal with 5:08 to play in the second quarter, had seemed unstoppable in the first half, when he was 8 for 14 from the field. “‘Dre was spectacular,” Collins said of Iguodala’s defense in the second half. “You have to be a strong-willed player to play against Kobe Bryant. Those kinds of players break your spirit when they hit the kinds of shots he was hitting in the first half.”
Meanwhile, the Lakers fell to 3-9 on the road. They were without coach Mike Brown , Metta World Peace continued his season-long vanishing act and the bench was blasted, 49-16. By the time the horn sounded, Bryant’s milestone – he is now fifth, behind Kareem, Karl Malone, Jordan and Wilt – had lost a lot of its luster.
From Dave McMenamin of ESPN Los Angeles: “Bryant was obviously more disappointed in the loss than satisfied from passing O’Neal. The Lakers are 14-11 on the season and just 3-9 on the road. They hardly have the look of a championship favorite and at this point in Bryant’s career; all he plays for is the chance to lift the Larry O’Brien Trophy in celebration as the last team standing at the end of the season. “I just want No. 6, man,” Bryant said, referring to his championship count, when asked where he wanted to finish on the all-time scoring list when he retires. “I’m not asking for too much, man. Just give me a sixth ring, damn it.”
Given the Lakers’ struggles, that doesn’t seem likely. They are now four games in the loss column behind the rival Clippers, who are showing that they know how to win on the road.
Also dispatched by the Grammy Award prep at Staples, the Clippers improved to 2-0 on their six-game trip – and won their fourth straight road game – with a gritty 107-102 overtime win at Orlando.
The Clippers lost big men DeAndre Jordan and Reggie Evans to fouls and silent assassin Chauncey Billups to an Achilles tendon injury. They rallied from an early 15-point deficit and got two huge baskets in OT from Caron Butler when they looked dead.
However, one report said Billups’ season may be dead.
From Steve Kyler of Hoopsworld: “Clippers head coach Vinny Del Negro would not offer many details, except to confirm that it was an Achilles injury. “He’s going to be re-evaluated,” Del Negro said. “He’s got an Achilles injury. I don’t know the severity of it, but it’s kind of bittersweet. We will see what happens but we will re-evaluate it (Tuesday).” Many of Billups’ teammates commented in the locker room that their point guard was “done,” hinting that the Achilles was more than a strain and was, in fact, a full tear. Billups left the locker room with his foot in a boot, walked with the aid of crutches and did not speak to media. One of the Clippers coaches commented under his breath that losing Billups was “a damn shame.”
If Billups does have a torn Achilles tendon, he may be “done” for more than the season. He is a free agent this summer, and that injury requires a long rehab.
Billups was nowhere near the biggest name knocked out by injury Monday night. How about Carmelo Anthony – again. And Derrick Rose – again.
The Knicks were already without Amar’e Stoudemire, whose brother was killed in a car crash in Florida earlier in the day. Six minutes into their home contest with the Utah Jazz, the Knicks lost Anthony to a strained groin.
From Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News: “Anthony had already missed games this season with ankle, wrist and thumb injuries. He was running up court, full stride when he seemed to feel a pain in. He pulled up and the Knicks took a timeout. Trainers looked at him briefly on the bench, but quickly took him back to the training room.”
Anthony left with two points, which means the Knicks are 2-0 this season when their best scorer manages two or less. As he did Saturday, embattled coach Mike D’Antoni put the offense in the hands of Jeremy Lin, who responded in his first start with career highs of 28 points and eight assists to spearhead a 99-88 victory and silence some of the pleading for Baron Davis, who now has an elbow infection that will delay his back rehab.
From Howard Beck of the New York Times: “There was little left of the Knicks’ starry lineup. Yet the arena was filled with joyful pandemonium, all inspired by Lin, the undrafted point guard from Harvard, and the city’s new sports hero. With Lin running the point, the ball moved and the offense hummed, transforming the Knicks’ shoddy bench into a productive unit. The Knicks’ leaders, after Lin, were the seldom-used Steve Novak with 19 points, the much-maligned Jared Jeffries with 13 points and 8 rebounds, and Bill Walker with 11 points. Chandler, the last Knicks star standing, had 10 points and 7 rebounds in 22 minutes. “What Jeremy is doing is incredible,” Chandler said, “because he’s moving everybody to their natural positions. Nobody’s having to do anything that they’re not accustomed to doing. The only blemish was in the turnover column, where Lin had eight, all in the second half — forgivable under the circumstances because he played all but 3 minutes 8 seconds of the game. “I’m riding him like freaking Secretariat,” Coach Mike D’Antoni said, laughing.”
Across the Hudson, the Bulls bombarded the New Jersey Nets, 108-87, and did it mostly without Rose, who left with back spasms late in the first half and did not return.
From K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune: “Rose complained of soreness during his electrifying, 35-minute performance on Saturday night in Milwaukee, participated in portions of Sunday’s practice and started Monday’s game. But he drew two fouls in the first 2 minutes, 56 seconds — the second, an offensive foul away from the ball, caused Tom Thibodeau to erupt on official Violet Palmer — and winced when he landed following a second-quarter layup. Rose finished with four points, two turnovers and zero assists in 10:40 and left for good at the 2:54 mark of the second quarter. “I feel all right, just back spasms,” Rose said. “Ain’t nothing to worry about. (Tuesday), we have a day off. Get treatment. Get a massage. For right now, I’ll be playing next game. It’s nothing like I’m going to be sitting out. I always try to think positive.” Rose said the pain actually has bothered him since before the Jan. 30 game in Washington.”
The MVP already has missed five games this season with a toe injury, and the Bulls are 4-1 without him. They simply have turned to backups C.J. Watson and John Lucas III. Watson had 14 points, 11 assists, seven rebounds and two steals vs. the Nets.
And in Denver, the Nuggets started Kosta Koufos and rookies Kenneth Faried and Julyan Stone in place of injured starters Timofey Mozgov, Nene and Arron Afflalo. And in the third quarter of a 99-90 loss to Houston, they also lost Danilo Gallinari to a foot injury that could be serious.
From Benjamin Hochman of the Denver Post: “The Nuggets (15-10) also might have lost Danilo Gallinari, who suffered a sprained left ankle during the third quarter. X-rays revealed a chip fracture in the foot. Gallinari will have a CT scan (Tuesday).”
Elsewhere …
- The Thunder avenged their only home loss with a 111-107 win in Portland. OKC got a huge break as Kevin Durant’s driving layup was ruled by referee Scott Foster to be goaltended by LaMarcus Aldridge, although replays showed that Aldridge got a hand on the ball just before it hit the backboard. Durant scored 33 and Russell Westbrook had 28, 11 rebounds and eight assists. Aldridge torched OKC’s frontcourt for 39.
- There should be some cause for concern in Atlanta, where the Hawks have lost three straight following a 99-90 setback to the Suns as Steve Nash ran wild with 24 points and 11 assists. With Al Horford and Jason Collins both out with injuries, Zaza Pachulia is their only center and gives them no low-post defense. And with a payroll at over $70 million, they already are a tax team and won’t pursue someone like Joel Przybilla.
- The Kings have won three in a row for just the second time since Nov. 2009, storming back from 18 down for a 100-92 victory at New Orleans, which is 2-21 since a 2-0 start. DeMarcus Cousins had 28 points, 19 rebounds and three blocks. After sitting out seven games and waiting for the Hornets to unsuccessfully trade him, Chris Kaman returned with 10 points and 12 rebounds. Nah, the Hawks wouldn’t want him.
- The Spurs began their nine-game rodeo road trip with their fifth straight win, beating the Grizzlies, 89-84. Their next stop is Philadelphia on Wednesday. Memphis has dropped seven of nine in an absolutely brutal stretch of schedule that doesn’t end until early next week and will have the Grizz play at least 11 of 13 games against teams .500 or better.
- In a game that could have significant bearing on the draft lottery, the Wizards edged the Raptors, 111-108, in overtime. Washington wasted an 18-point lead in the third quarter. Toronto showed its appreciation by going 0-for-7 with a turnover in OT. The game nearly had four 30-point scorers as John Wall had 31, Jerryd Bayless and Linas Kleiza each had 30 and Nick Young had 29.