KANSAN.COM / THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN / MONDAY, MAY 3, 2010 / SPORTS
7B
2010 NBA PLAYOFFS
Kobe's fantastic finish helps LA win
ASSOCIATED PRESS
LOS ANGELES — Just in case the Utah Jazz forgot how Kobe Bryant finishes games, he provided another painful playoff reminder.
Bryant scored 11 of his 31 points in the final four minutes, and the Los Angeles Lakers blew a fourth-quarter lead before rallying for a 104-99 victory over the Jazz in their second-round series opener Sunday.
Pau Gasol had 25 points and 12 rebounds for the top-seeded Lakers, who played a dismal final period before Bryant seized control. Last season's NBA finals MVP coolly scored seven consecutive points to erase Utah's four-point lead, followed by a dynamic slice through the lane for a layup with 22.6 seconds left.
The clubs are meeting in the postseason for the third consecutive year after the Lakers ended Utah's last two seasons. In each of the teams' previous five playoff meetings, the winner went on to the NBA finals.
Deron Williams scored 24 points for fifth-seeded Utah, which managed just one more field goal after taking a 93-89 lead with 4:10 to play. Utah has lost 15 straight to the Lakers at Staples Center, including seven playoff games.
Los Angeles will host Game 2 of the best-of-seven series on Tuesday night.
Carlos Boozer had 18 points and 12 rebounds for Utah. Paul Millsap and C.J. Miles contributed 16 points apiece, including several difficult baskets in the fourth quarter while the jazz surged ahead with a 12-1 run.
It wasn't enough to stop Bryant, who took over right when Utah's excited bench seemed certain it was headed to an upset win.
Both teams finished their first-round series roughly 36 hours earlier, with the Lakers winning at Oklahoma City on Gasol's last-second tip-in shortly before Utah held off Denver.
Lakers center Andrew Bynum started and played 24 minutes after discovering a small tear in the meniscus of his right knee Saturday. The 7-footer wore a large brace on his knee, but didn't appear limited while collecting eight points and 10 rebounds.
Utah also has pronounced injury problems. With Andrei Kirilenko still sidelined with a strained left calf and center Mehmet Okur out for the postseason, the Jazz struggled to guard the Lakers inside when Los Angeles forced the ball down low.
But the Lakers sometimes seemed disinterested, a mood matched by the home crowd. After the Lakers' consecutive losses to Oklahoma City inspired a crackling atmosphere for their blowout victory in Game 5 last week. Staples Center was back to its usual relaxed state.
Los Angeles gave out thousands of white T-shirts in an apparent attempt at a whiteout crowd to go with the Lakers' Sunday white uniforms, but the majority of fans didn't bother to put on the shirts. Lakers fans get excited about titles, not T-shirts — and despite an inconsistent regular season, their team appears capable of contending for its 16th crown.
Williams injured his elbow late in Utah's series-clinching win over Denver, putting his availability for Game 1 in doubt. He forced the Jazz to call a full timeout just 20 seconds in after hurting his arm on their first possession. Yet he showed no obvious favor toward the injury while scoring 17 points in the first half.
Los Angeles opened with 15-for-19 shooting in the first quarter, including five shots without a miss by Bryant. The Lakers led by 14 in the first half, but Utah sliced the lead to three in the third quarter before heading into the final period trailing 81-73.
With both teams using four reserves apiece to open the fourth quarter, Hill trimmed the Lakers' lead to 82-81 on Millaps's layup with 7:43 left. Miles' free throws gave Utah its first lead since the first quarter moments later — but then Bryant got started.
GAME1 at Los Angeles
LA Lakers 104 Utah99 (Los Angeles leads series 1,0)
NEXT GAME:
at Los Angeles
Tuesday, 9:30 p.m.
TNT
UPCOMING GAMES
GAME 2
Boston at Cleveland
Monday, 7 p.m., TNT
GAME 1 San Antonio at Phoenix Monday, 10:30 p.m., TNT
GAME 1
Atlanta at Orlando
Tuesday, 7 p.m., TNT
GAME 2 Utah at LA Lakers Tuesday. 9:30 p.m., TNT
GAME 2
San Antonio at Phoenix
Wednesday, 8 p.m., TNT
GAME 2 Atlanta at Orlando Thursday, 7 p.m., TNT
GAME 3
Cleveland at Boston
Friday, 6 p.m., ESPN
GAME 3
Phoenix at San Antonio
Friday, 8:30 p.m., ESPN
Hawks advance to second round with defeat of Bucks
ASSOCIATED PRESS
ATLANTA — The Atlanta Hawks weren't going to let another game slip on their home court.
After keeping their season alive with a gutty win in Milwaukee, the Hawks made sure the Bucks were in no position to duplicate their improbable Game 5 upset. Jamal Crawford scored 22 points, Al Horford put up a double-double and Atlanta pulled away for a 95-74 win Sunday that gave the Hawks a 4-3 triumph in the tougher-than-expected series.
It was the only series to go the distance in the opening round.
The third-seeded Hawks advanced to face No. 2 Orlando in the Eastern Conference semifinals. The Magic, who have been resting since wrapping up a sweep of Charlotte last Monday, will host the first two games of the series beginning Tuesday night.
Crawford, appearing in the playoffs for the first time in his 10-year
career, looked like a rookie through the first five games of the series. He was at his lowest after a 4-for-18 shooting performance in Game 5, when the Hawks squandered a nine-point lead in the final four minutes to put the Bucks in control of the series.
But Crawford scored 24 points in Game 6, and the Hawks clamped down defensively for an 83-69 win that sent the series back to Atlanta for Game 7.
This one was no contest.
The Hawks led by as many 24 late in the game and got a chance to pull their starters so they could receive a proper ovation from the sellout crowd of 19,241.
GAME 7 at Atlanta
Crawford hit 8 of 16 shots, including a pair of 3 pointers. Horford worked hard at both ends of the court, finishing with 16 points and 15 rebounds. Mike Bibby scored 15 points.
"We going to Disney World!" the public address announcer screamed as the final seconds ticked off.
Atlanta 95,
Milwaukee 74
(Atlanta wins series 4-3)
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Cavs withstand early Celtics punch
CLEVELAND — LeBron James always soars in the NBA playoffs. Mo Williams finally rose to the occasion — literally.
Williams' unexpected dunk over Pierce fueled a game-ending
Williams delivered his first dunk for Cleveland, a resounding slam that stunned Boston's Paul Pierce, shook the arena and ignited the Cavaliers, who rallied for a 101-93 victory over the Celtics on Saturday night after being outplayed for much of Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals.
"I knew Mo could dunk," James said of his teammate, generously listed as 6-foot-1. "I told Mo a long time ago if he ever dunked in a game it was going to spark us like we haven't been sparked before."
Hours before receiving his second straight MVP award, James scored 35 points and Williams added 20, 14 in the third quarter.
James, playing with a sprained and bruised right elbow, delivered yet another memorable performance as the Cavs withstood a furious punch from the Celtics.
43-24 spurt by the Cavs.
NEXT GAME:
Monday, at Cleveland
7 p.m., TNT
Cleveland 101,
Boston 93
(Cleveland leads series 1-0)
GAME 1
at Cleveland
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