Pau Gasol poured 14 of his 29 points in the 4th quarter and the defending NBA champs easily roared away in the final minutes for a 124-112 dismantling of the Phoenix Suns. Gasol grabbed 9 rebounds and had 5 assists, is the game’s top performer where he and Kobe Bryant who has a double-double (21 points and 13 assists) had a superb offensive game that work against the Phoenix Suns that is one of the NBA’s highest-scoring teams.
For the second straight game, “We want Boston!” chants rained down from the Staples Center crowd in the final minutes. It only fuels the fire of revenge for the Green Team who ousted the Lakers in 2008 NBA finals 4-2. If things will run smoothly for these two teams, the 2010 NBA Finals will feature two NBA Champions for the past 2 years. It will be an exciting match-up again, a classic Lakers-Celtic rivalry.
After Kobe Bryant scored 40 points in Game 1, it was now clearer for the Phoenix Suns whom they must guard and double-team. But double teaming Bryant is not an easy task, as last year’s finals MVP ended making a record of the most assists (13 points) by a Lakers player in a postseason game since Magic Johnson in 1996. Although Bryant’s streak of six straight 30-point game ended, it open a lot of scoring opportunities for his team mates by dishing easy assist. The one who benefited the assist most was Gasol who draws foul each time Bryant dishes an assist on him. Ron Artest has a high scoring night too, scoring 18 points along with Lamar Odom who had a double-double too (17 points and game high11 rebounds). Bynum also contributed 13 points despite playing with an injury.
Game 3 will be held in US Airways Center at Phoenix, Arizona. It will be tough hole for the Phoenix Suns to get out having the fact that the Lakers have only lost once in franchise’s history in a best-of-seven-playoff series after taking 2-0 lead. Unless the Suns figures out a way to beat L.A. there will be a Hollywood and Bean Town showdown (if things run smoothly too for the Celtics) in this year’s NBA Finals. Grant Hill who is having a hot game, scored 14 of his 23 points in the 3rd quarter that help the Phoenix Suns erased a 14 point lead by the Lakers and came to tie the game at 90 a piece in the end of the 3rd quarter. Steve Nash had a double-double, too, (11 points and a game high 15 assists). Jason Richardson scores a team high 27 points while Suns all-star forward Amare Stoudemire scored 18 points who was booed by the fans when he put down Lamar Odom’s superb Game 1 double-double (19 points and 19 rebound), calling it as a lucky game for Odom.
No it was not just pure luck but also about skills. Amare should close his mouth and find answers for the deep hole that they are in right now and must do find-out if his Phoenix Suns has the luck to get even and win the series for them.
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