Recap: Phoenix vs. LA Lakers
Sports Network | November 21, 2008
Phoenix, AZ (Sports Network) - Kobe Bryant scored 24 points and Lamar Odom filled the stat sheet with 13 points and nine rebounds off the bench, as the red-hot Lakers rolled past Phoenix, 105-92.
Vladimir Radmanovic contributed 15 points and Andrew Bynum posted 10 points and seven boards for the Lakers, who have won nine of 10 to open the season. Jordan Farmar donated 11 points off the bench and Trevor Ariza added 10.
Amare Stoudemire scored a team-high 21 points to go along with eight rebounds, while Shaquille O'Neal netted 15 points and grabbed nine rebounds in defeat. Steve Nash dished out 10 assists to go along with eight points, and Grant Hill scored 11 off the bench for the Suns, who have dropped two in a row.
The Lakers held a narrow 26-24 lead after one period and took a 50-44 edge into the locker room.
Bryant asserted his offensive dominance with 11 points in the third period. The star guard and frontcourt mate Bynum controlled the scoring column early in the period, as Bynum and Bryant exchanged dunks for the first six LA points in the period and Bryant's trey moments later made the score 59-50.
A Derek Fisher jumper and a Bryant pull-up bucket pushed the advantage to 63-51 with 7:41 left in the stanza. Stoudemire's driving layup narrowed the deficit to eight points, 70-62, but Fisher and Radmanovic buried back-to-back threes to push the lead to 76-62.
Los Angeles slowly pulled away during the fourth quarter. A 13-point edge quickly turned into an 18-point differential with a 9-4 stretch to open the period. Ariza's jumper and Odom's trey capped the spurt with 8:34 on the clock.
The Lakers rolled to victory from there.
The Lakers improved to 5-0 on the road this season...Los Angeles has won four of the last five meetings between the two teams and three in a row in Phoenix...Fisher scored nine points with four assists...Boris Diaw reached double figures with 10 points in defeat.
