| Lakers Struck Back Authored by Scott Essman - December 29, 2005 - 3:05 am
Midway through the hard-fought Laker game Wednesday night, Mike Miller, a guard-forward for the Memphis Grizzlies originally from South Dakota, took a shot at Kobe Bryant as the Laker guard drove towards the basket. Injuring Bryant’s eye, Miller sent the Laker’s best player to the locker room for treatment. When Bryant returned, he struck right back, both literally and figuratively. Bryant stiff-armed Miller
in the fourth quarter as the 6’8” 218-pound Grizzly drove the lane, sending him to the floor. But that event was only symbolic of the Lakers attitude and play in the overall game.
After frustrating losses at both Miami and Washington, the Lakers played valiantly and energetically on every play against Memphis, especially in the game’s late stages. Bryant, with a bandage over his left eye through the second half, still managed 45 points.
Nonetheless, the grueling game resulted in a Laker loss, 100-99, in overtime. Again, as in the last three games, the Lakers had the ball and a chance to win with time winding down. Again, they came up short.
The Grizzlies had the ball with exactly 24 seconds to play in the overtime, and the Lakers chose not to foul. Grizzly seven-foot power forward Pau Gasol threw the ball away after an in-bounds play and the Lakers had a chance with about 14 seconds to play.
The Lakers chose to go down the court without a timeout and Bryant started at the top of the key. He drove baseline to the basket and tried a reverse layup, but it bounced high off of the glass. Center Chris Mihm – who did have a good game – rebounded, but his followup turnaround hook glanced off of the front of the rim. Gasol helped rebound and the Grizzlies retained possession as the clock ran out.
Once again, Bryant was the Lakers’ top man, though Mihm, forward Lamar Odom, and surprise starting small forward Devean George all had solid games. Despite the loss, most impressive was the Laker aggression and energy through crucial stages of the game.
Of note, Memphis is no pushover, and with a 17-10 record, good enough for fifth in the conference, have become a true Laker rival. Besides the efforts of Gasol, who had 24 points, Grizzly point guard Damon Stoudamire led the team with 25 points.
The Lakers next game is at home versus Utah on New Year’s Day. |
