Lakers suddenly
walk on the edge
By Rob Gloster
The Associated Press
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The
coronation of the Los Angeles
Lakers is not going exactly as
planned.
After leading the NBA with a
67-15 record and comfortably
winning the first two games of
their best-of-five playoff series
against the Kings, the Lakers ex
pected to leave Sacramento with
a few days to relax before the sec
ond round.
Instead, they headed home
needing a victory Friday night to
advance. And with Shaquille
O’Neal struggling with his shoot
ing, the once invincible Lakers —
who had winning streaks of 19,
16 and 11 games this season —
seem flawed.
“I have to dig deeper and play
my game,” said O’Neal, 18-for-44
from the field in the last two
games after shooting 63 percent
in the first two games. “As a
team, we didn’t shoot well.”
After losing a second straight
game in Sacramento, the Lakers
will be forced to focus on the
Kings while the Phoenix Suns —
who dethroned the San Antonio
Spurs in the first round and
await the Lakers-Kings winner—
can look ahead.
The conference semifinals be
gin Sunday in Los Angeles if the
Lakers win Friday night or in
Phoenix if the Kings win.
“We didn’t want to be in this
situation,” said Lakers guard
Glen Rice, whose team never lost
three straight during the regular
season. “Now we’re in it, and we
have to be prepared.”
Chris Webber had 23 points, 13
rebounds, eight assists, seven
blocks and four steals Tuesday
night as the Kings beat the Lakers
101-88 to even the series at 2-2.
Los Angeles never led in the
game, and got no closer than six
points in the fourth quarter
Jon Barry had 17 points, Tony
Delk had 12 and Predrag Sto
jakovic 11 as the Sacramento
backups, who call themselves the
“Bench Mob,” outscored the Lak
ers’ reserves 42-8 and provided
the decisive spark for the second
straight game.
While Sacramento point guard
Jason Williams went l-for-8 from
the field and was benched for
nearly the entire fourth quarter
for the second straight game, the
Kings’, reserves outscored their
Los Angeles counterparts 20-5 in
the final period.
“Our game is not our bench,
that’s their game,’’ Lakers coach
Phil Jackson said. “It’s playoff
basketball, it’s a different type of
basketball, and we didn’t pick up
the intensity.”
Kobe Bryant had 32 points for
the Lakers, O’Neal had 25 points
and 16 rebounds and Glen Rice
had 17 points. But the rest of the
Los Angeles squad had 14 points.
“We know Shaq and Kobe are
great players and they’re going to
get their points,” Kings coach
Rick Adelman said. “We kept
Rice around his average and the
other players didn’t hurt us.”
The normally unflappable
Jackson looked pained at times,
and his brow was covered with
sweat. A sign in the crowd
mocked “Zen Schmen,” referring
to Jackson’s sometimes mystical
approach to coaching.
Sacramento is trying to become
the 13th team to come back from
trailing 2-0 to win a series. No
team has done it since the Hous
ton Rockets in 1995.
The Lakers began preparations
for Game 5 by meeting and
watching film Wednesday.
“I don’t think they’re stunned,
I think what they are is angry,
there’s frustration,” Jackson said
afterward. “They’ve used their
talent well during the year.
There’s no reason to break from
that now.” * «
Asked about the Lakers’ confi
dence, Jackson said, “It’s got to be
shaky. We’re pretty human.
That’s what shakes teams into ac
tion is when they get anxious
about surviving. That’s what this
is.”
The Lakers said Sacramento
benefited from referees’ calls —
or lack of calls — on its home
court, and they hope that will be
reversed when the series moves
back to Los Angeles. They ac
cused the Kings of playing an il
legal zone defense around
O’Neal.
“Some of the aggressive de
fenses they got away with here
on their home court, hopefully
they won’t get away with that on
our court,” Bryant said.
Padres take three
to drown Marlins
By Bernie Wilson
The Associated Press
SAN DIEGO — Brian Meadows
came within two outs of his first
career shutout, and Phil Nevin
homered for the second straight
game as the Padres beat the Florida
Marlins 3-1 on Wednesday night.
Meadows (3-2), facing the Mar
lins for the first time since they
traded him to the Padres for reliev
er Dan Miceli on Nov. 15, allowed
five hits and struck out four.
It was the sixth straight game
that a Padres starter has pitched at
least seven innings.
Meadows was backed by solid
defense. The Marlins got a runner
to third with one out in the second
inning and another runner to third
with two outs in the fifth only to
strand both.
He left after giving up a homer
to Cliff Floyd with one out in the
ninth inning. Trevor Hoffman
struck out the final two batters for
his fifth save.
Nevin homered off Brad Penny
(3-3) leading off the second, his
eighth. Nevin hit a two-run homer
off Vladimir Nunez in Tuesday
night’s 8-3 win.
The Padres made it 3-0 in the
third. A1 Martin walked with two
outs and scored on Jackson’s dou
ble. Jackson took third on Ryan
Klesko’s infield single and scored
when Penny hobbled the throw
from first baseman Derrek Lee and
let the ball roll away.
Penny allowed three runs —
two earned—and five hits in 6 2-3
innings, struck out five and
walked five.
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