Los Angeles Lakers vs Seattle Supersonics
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Before collecting two technical fouls and making an unexpected early exit late in the third quarter, Kobe Bryant manhandled the Sonics with his scoring and pinpoint passing and driving the Los Angeles Lakers to an insurmountable lead.
Maybe if Seattle had shot better than 40 percent, the outcome might have been different. But with three players out of the lineup and three newcomers adjusting the system, the undermanned Sonics trailed from start to finish and fell 111-91 in front of 17,072 at KeyArena.
"They can sense from the beginning if you're ready to play," guard Earl Watson said. "With them, they come with a different type of edge. They are going to come out from the beginning and get it over with as soon as possible."
A large portion of the sold-out crowd wore No. 24 Los Angeles jerseys and packed the building to see the Lakers star, who was better than advertised for most of three quarters.
The All-Star guard seemed oblivious to the flashbulbs that exploded around the arena and the fans who shouted his name. His gaze remained the same. Bryant rarely smiled and barked orders at teammates all night.
"He's the only superstar that I know who plays with a chip on his shoulder," Watson said.
Bryant scored 11 points in the first quarter and finished with 21 on 8-for-13 shooting. He also doled out 10 assists in 26 minutes.
Late in the third quarter, he picked up a technical foul from referee Brian Forte after Bryant thought he was fouled while fighting for an offensive rebound. During a lull in the action, Bryant continued barking at Forte, who gave him another technical, which meant an ejection and a $1,000 fine.
"I'm disappointed," Bryant said. "But I'm not going to comment on the official because I don't want to get fined any more."
The Lakers led 88-57 when Bryant left with four minutes left in the third.
Once he disappeared in the KeyArena tunnels, the Lakers barely blinked when the Sonics cut their deficit from 31 points to 18.
Seattle trailed 99-81 with 6:49 remaining, but that was as close as it would get.
Center Pau Gasol and forward Lamar Odom led the Lakers over the final 16 minutes to an easy win that pushed Los Angeles' record to 39-17 and moved the Lakers ahead of Phoenix for the best record in the Western Conference.
Gasol scored a game-high 22 points on 10-for-18 shooting and Odom had 19 points and 11 rebounds. Seven Lakers scored in double figures.
"We're starting to understand that it doesn't matter if we're playing at home or on the road," Bryant said. "We've done a good job of executing and building some big leads."
The Lakers, which won their seventh straight game, raced to an early 18-6 lead and never looked back. Los Angeles led 34-18 after the first period and held a 62-43 advantage at halftime.
"To be in a game with these guys, you need them to be a little off their game, and you need to be playing extremely well," coach P.J. Carlesimo said. "They played extremely well, and we didn't play well at all."
The Sonics (15-40) were missing forward Chris Wilcox and newcomer Donyell Marshall, who suffered from flulike symptoms. Damien Wilkins sat out because of a strained right wrist.
Their absence allowed forwards Ira Newble and Adrian Griffin to make their Sonics debuts.
Sonics rookie Kevin Durant converted 4 of 13 shots and finished with 15 points. Mickael Gelabale picked up the scoring slack and finished with a career-high 21 points. He also had eight rebounds.
"Early in the season, I had confidence for a little while and then it went away," Gelabale said. "I just want to show what I can do, which is make shots and make plays."
