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Baketball Roundup
Lakers 119, Kings 113
The good news for the Sacramento Kings was they were finally able to control Shaquille O'Neal. The bad news? They didn't have an answer for Kobe Bryant.
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Lakers guard Kobe Bryant (8) shoots against Kings center Vlade Divac (21). Kobe ended up with 48 points. REUTERS |
Bryant's 48 points and 16 rebounds helped the Lakers advance to their second straight Western Conference finals with a sweeping the Kings in their best-of-seven series. It was the Lakers' 15th straight win since April 1, and they will now face the winner of the San Antonio-Dallas series.
After record-setting performances in the first two games of the series, Shaquille O'Neal was held to "only" 25 points and 10 rebounds. He spent his second straight game in foul trouble under constant pressure from the fired-up Kings, and fouled out with 3:09 left.
No matter, Bryant carried the Lakers' offensive load with ease and flair. What made it particularly impressive was the fact that he did it against Doug Christie, one of the league's top defenders.
Chris Webber, in what was probably his last game with Sacramento, had 21 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists. But he went 8-for-25 from the field and had just two points in the fourth quarter.
Hornets 85, Bucks 78
Whassup with the Bucks?
The highest scoring team in the NBA playoffs is heading home with their tails between their legs after only scoring 12 points in the fourth quarter, letting the Hornets take the win and even the series at two games apiece.
"They've got the momentum, no doubt about it," Milwaukee's Scott Williams said. "We're leaving here pretty flat."
Milwaukee's points total in Game 4 was the franchise's lowest in post-season history - a total of 185 games - and its turnover total (24) was easily its highest of the four games in the best-of-seven series.
The Bucks were averaging 103 points this post-season and had a combined 29 turnovers in three games against Charlotte before Sunday's disastrous offensive performance.
Charlotte used a scrappy defense led by P.J. Brown and Baron Davis' six steals to shake Milwaukee's confidence.
NEXT GAME: Tuesday, at Milwaukee
76ers 84, Raptors 79
It was an ugly game all around.
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The 76ers Allen Iverson (left) scoots past Vince Carter of the Raptors. Both shot around 30% for the game. REUTERS |
The Toronto Raptors shot just 33%, barely better than Sir Chuck-a-lot, Allan Iverson, who connected on only 10 of 30 shot attempts.
But hand it to Iverson, he hit a 3-pointer with 2:21 remaining when he had to. His trey broke up a tie after the Raptors had come back from a 16-point deficit. The Sixers then went on to win the game and tie the series at two games apiece.
Disappointed in the play of his team, Iverson voiced his opinions in two players-only meetings.
"I told my teammates we're harder than we've been playing," said Iverson. "We're not a finesse team or anything like that, doing things the pretty way. We do things the dirty way, the hard way."
The Sixers were dealt a tough blow when starting small forward George Lynch fractured his left foot in the third quarter. He'll be out for the rest of the playoffs. Lynch had been the one responsible for handling Vince Carter.
Aaron McKie, the NBA's sixth man of the year, moved into Philadelphia's starting lineup and had 18 points, five assists, and five rebounds. McKie also spent much of the game defending Vince Carter, helping hold him to 25 points on 8-for-27 shooting.
NEXT GAME: Wednesday, at Philadelphia
Playoff Results from May 11-13, 2001
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