LOS ANGELES, 18 December 2004 — Former Sacramento Kings star Vlade Divac got the cheers, and new teammate Kobe Bryant gave the Los Angeles Lakers the surprisingly easy win.
Bryant had 31 points and 12 assists as the Lakers handed the red-hot Kings their worst home loss in nearly six and a half years, with a 115-99 route on Thursday night.
“We played extremely well tonight. From the opening tip, everybody was focused,” Bryant explained. “We needed a big win on the road, we hadn’t had one this season. And, to come in here against a team like Sacramento, it’s a big win for us.”
Lamar Odom scored 22 points, while reserves Tierre Brown and Brian Cook chipped in with 15 and 12, respectively as Los Angeles, (13-9), earned its biggest road win of the season.
“It was a great team win, probably a milestone for us,” Lakers coach Rudy Tomjanovich said. “Now we’ve got something we talk about — winning on the road — and we have something to look back on.”
The lopsided victory in the Pacific Division collision capped the emotional night for Divac, who returned to Arco Arena for the first time since signing with the Lakers last summer as a free agent, following six seasons as one of the most popular Kings.
The crazed but knowledgeable Arco Arena fans didn’t forget him, however. They greeted the 36-year-old Serb center with a heartfelt standing ovation when he entered the game late in the first quarter.
“Arco, it’s a special place,” said Divac, who went scoreless in his three-minute stint. “Even though I play for the Lakers, I will always be a part of the Kings. It’s fun to be back, and my team won.”
“It was unbelievable,” said Kings sharpshooter and close Serbian friend Peja Stojakovic of the reception.
“He really deserved it. I’m proud of him. I’m really glad he was my teammate for six years.”
Chris Webber and Bobby Jackson scored 20 points apiece for Sacramento, (15-7), which suffered its third loss in the last 17 games.
“They outplayed us. I don’t know what else to say,” added Stojakovic, who finished with 16 points.
“They played much better than we did in every aspect of the game. They outrebounded us, outran us, outscored us. It happens.
Los Angeles built a 55-49 halftime lead, before breaking the game open in the third quarter. Bryant had 16 points as the Lakers outscored Kings, 37-22, to take a commanding 92-71 cushion and cruised home.
Detroit Pistons 81 Cleveland Cavaliers 69: LeBron James embarrassed the Pistons the last time they met. This time, the defending NBA champions got mad, and got even.
Richard Hamilton scored 17 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter and the Pistons nearly held James scoreless in the second half, to rally past the visiting Cavaliers.
James shredded Detroit’s signature defense for a career-high 43 points in a 92-76 victory on Nov. 28 in Cleveland. But Pistons pride was at stake.
“Anybody who scores that many points against our defense, we get mad about it,” Hamilton said. “So tonight we came out and showed what we can really do.”
James was held to a season-low 11 points on 4-of-21 shooting, including 1-of-10 in the second half that helped turn the game around.
“They played tougher defense tonight,” said James, the league’s fourth highest scorer, averaging 25 points per game. “They were doubling me, so I was either giving it up or driving and trying to dish it off. They were making me take a lot of tough shots, and that was the key to their win tonight.”
Trailing 41-31 at halftime, the Pistons held the Cavaliers to 3-of-18 shooting, and outscored them 21-6 in the third quarter, to take a 52-47 advantage.
Hamilton took over from there as the Pistons pulled away.
Chauncey Billups scored 16, Rasheed Wallace had 13 and Ben Wallace added 10 points and 15 rebounds for Detroit, which outscored Cleveland, 50-28, in the second half. Drew Gooden scored 18 points and Jeff McInniss added 14 for Central Division leading Cleveland.
Chicago Bulls 85, Milwaukee Bucks 77: Kirk Hinrich scored 28 points and Eddy Curry added 20, leading the Bulls to their first two-game winning streak of the season.
Michael Redd had 22 points for slumping Milwaukee, which lost for the 13th time in the last 16 games overall, and fell to 1-9 on the road.
