LOS ANGELES, 2 March 2004 — It wasn’t supposed to be this easy but perhaps it served as a barometer of just how well the Los Angeles Lakers are playing. Shaquille O’Neal had 19 points and 14 rebounds as the visiting Lakers rolled past New Jersey, 100-83 on Sunday for their ninth win in the last 11 games.
The showdown appeared to be a dandy between two of the hottest teams. But the Lakers never trailed and dominated in handing the Nets their second loss in the last three games following an NBA season-high 14 consecutive victories.
“I kept telling the players as we went through the game that it is much easier than it’s supposed to be,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. “Get ready for the charge the Nets are going to lay on you, but we never got it. They had an off game and we played a relatively good game.”
Gary Payton scored 10 of his 16 points in the first quarter, and Horace Grant added a season-high 14 for Los Angeles, which led 49-35 at halftime. After a sizzling 18-3 season start, the Lakers slumped due to injuries to stars O’Neal, Kobe Bryant and Karl Malone. With O’Neal and Bryant healthy again, and Malone (sprained knee) two weeks away from a return, the Lakers are gearing up for a strong finishing kick, with hopes of going deep into the playoffs.
“Everybody is starting to come around,” said Bryant after an 11-point, 10-assist effort. “It just takes some time for everybody to get into the flow of things. This is the type of effort that you’ll see with everybody contributing.”
Richard Jefferson had 19 points for New Jersey, which had its nine-game home-winning streak snapped. Kenyon Martin and sore-kneed Jason Kidd were limited to 11 and 10 points, respectively.
“We came out from the beginning and had great looks,” Jefferson said. “We just couldn’t hit a shot. We missed layup after layup. It was just one of those nights.”
Elsewhere
Sacramento 108, Phoenix 94
Peja Stojakovic scored 32 points and Doug Christie added a season-high 28 points along with eight rebounds and nine assists as host the Kings won for the ninth time in the last 11 games. All-Star big man Brad Miller made a successful return with 16 points and 10 rebounds after sitting out the previous seven games with a sprained right foot in the wire-to-wire win.
Amare Stoudemire paced Phoenix with 33 points and 17 rebounds before fouling out.
Boston 91, Toronto 82
Paul Pierce scored 12 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter as the visiting Celtics sent the Raptors to their season-high ninth straight loss.
Milt Palacio had a season-high 19 points and eight assists for Toronto, which lost at Boston on Friday night.
Milwaukee 108, Miami 104
Michael Redd scored 27 points, and Desmond Mason added 21 as the host Bucks nearly squandered a 21-point fourth quarter cushion before escaping with their third straight victory. Eddie Jones had 25 points and Lamar Odom added 22 in Miami’s third consecutive setback.
Detroit 100, L.A. Clippers 88
Chauncey Billups scored 28 points and Richard Hamilton added 21, including eight in the final seven minutes, helping the Pistons to their fourth-straight win despite the ejection of head coach Larry Brown in the opening quarter.
Elton Brand had 26 points and 10 rebounds for the host Clippers, who have lost eight of 11.
Seattle 97, Houston 80
Rashard Lewis scored 12 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter, helping the SuperSonics rally after blowing an 11-point fourth-quarter lead. Vladimir Radmanovic had 19 points and 11 rebounds off the bench as Seattle snapped a three-game losing streak. Steve Francis led Houston with 15 points while Yao Ming added 14.
Philadelphia 81, Minnesota 74
Aaron McKie scored 18 points and Eric Snow added 13, including a key jumper with 20 seconds remaining as the 76ers stopped a four-game slide without injured stars Allen Iverson and Glenn Robinson.
Kevin Garnett scored 27 points and grabbed 13 rebounds for Midwest Division Minnesota, which lost for just the third time in the last 11 games.
Denver 107, New York 96
Carmelo Anthony had 25 points as the Nuggets stopped a five-game losing streak by handing the visiting Knicks to their sixth-straight loss. Kurt Thomas led New York with 18 points and 11 rebounds.
