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NBA Recap: Lakers hold off Hornets to clinch Pacific Division

April 12, 2008

Kobe Bryant scored 29 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out eight assists as the Los Angeles Lakers withstood a number of New Orleans comebacks to lock up the Pacific Division title with a 107-104 victory over the Hornets at the Staples Center.

Pau Gasol went for 25 points and six boards, and the Lakers (55-25) moved to within a half-game of the Hornets for the top seed in the Western Conference. By virtue of Phoenix's loss to Houston earlier Friday, they also clinched their first division title since 2003-04.

"We were aggressive early, and we executed on offense," Gasol said. "We're happy with the win and happy we held off their run. It feels good to win the division, but we also know the importance of the two games we have left."

Peja Stojakovic hit six three-pointers en route to 24 points, while Chris Paul dished out a game-high 17 assists to go with 15 points. New Orleans (55-24) dug itself an enormous first-half hole, and simply ran out of gas on the way to having its Southwest Division lead over Houston and San Antonio trimmed to one game.

Up 30 in the second quarter, 20 at the half and 15 early in the fourth, the Lakers suddenly found themselves ahead by just one after Stojakovic buried his final three to make it 96-95 with nearly four minutes still to go.

After a pair of Ronny Turiaf free throws though, Derek Fisher nailed a key three from the corner to make it a six-point game, and Paul then committed an ill-timed turnover that led to a Bryant free throw with 2:39 remaining. LA came up with a pair of stops on the next two Hornets possessions, with Gasol swatting David West's shot, and Lamar Odom stripping West in the backcourt.

Jannero Pargo hit a foul-line jumper in transition to cut the Hornets deficit to 102-97, but Gasol dropped in a baby hook, forcing a Hornets timeout with 1:10 left. West hit an elbow jumper, but Bryant, defended by a slower Stojakovic, attacked the rim at the other end and earned a pair of free throws that ultimately iced New Orleans' fate with about 45 ticks on the clock.

"We got off to a bad start," Stojakovic said. "We gave up too many easy baskets, inside and out. In the second half we made our run, but we didn't have the energy to complete the run."

Fisher finished with 15 points and six assists, while Odom scored 13 to go with a game-high 16 boards for the Lakers, winners in six of seven.

Tyson Chandler totaled 18 points and eight rebounds for the Hornets, and Pargo and West scored 17 and 14, respectively.

LA raced out to a 24-11 lead in the opening eight minutes, and was up 39-20 at the end of the first thanks to back-to-back threes from Bryant. The Lakers continued to lay it on early in the second, as their lead ballooned to 63-33 with about four minutes to go in the half. A late Lakers cold spell allowed the Hornets to gain some ground, but LA still held a 65-45 lead at the break.

New Orleans scored 14 of the first 18 points to open the second half, pulling back within 10 when Paul found Morris Peterson for a bucket in transition with over seven minutes still to go in the third.

Peterson's three inside the six-minute mark trimmed the Lakers lead to 71-64, and moments later a Paul-to-Chandler alley-oop made it a five-point game. Bryant then ignited a Lakers mini-spurt to close the third, completing a three-point play, hitting two free throws and dishing to Gasol for a dunk to push the LA advantage back to 82-73.

The Lakers' lead was seven entering the fourth, and early in the quarter they stretched the margin to 92-77 with a quick seven-point flurry. Jordan Farmar hit a three, Gasol buried a fadeaway jumper, and Bryant picked up a loose ball and threw down a vicious double-clutch reverse with 9:24 to go.

The Hornets responded though, with Pargo knocking down a stepback jumper in Gasol's face and Stojakovic sandwiching a Chandler dunk with a pair of threes to make it 93-87 with seven minutes remaining.

Game Notes

The division title is LA's 20th in the last 39 seasons...Stojakovic now has 226 three-pointers on the season, a new Hornets franchise record...New Orleans shot 51.3 percent, including 9-of-19 from three-point range, but was outworked on the glass to the tune of 45-33...The Lakers close out the season with home games against the Spurs and Kings, while the Hornets' remaining schedule includes the Kings, Clippers and Mavericks.

-- SportsNetwork

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