Lakers-Jazz: Game Two a Replay of Game One

If you missed Game 2 of the Lakers-Jazz series and forgot to set your Tivo, simply rewind your Tivo to Sunday’s Game 1.

The only difference was the score, 120-110 instead of 109-98. The outcome was the same. The Lakers are now up 2-0.

The game’s high scorer was the same. The NBA's new MVP, Kobe Bryant, had 34 points, eight rebounds, and six assists. The Lakers shot 43 foul shots, making 35 of them. That was 22 more than the Jazz, who only had 16 attempts from the charity stripe.

But the Jazz outscored the Lakers on second-chance points 21-2, the same as in Game 1. They also put up 33 more shots from the field for a season high 101 attempts to only 68 for the Lakers. But the Lakers made 57.4 percent of their shots, compared to 44.6 percent for the Jazz.

Again, the Jazz outrebounded the Lakers but by a narrower margin than in Game 1, where they snagged 57 rebounds to only 41 for the Lakers. Tonight, the Lakers cut that margin down to four, 41-37. Lamar Odom played a key role in the reduction, pulling down 16 rebounds to go with his 19 points.

The game scenario was pretty much the same as Game 1. The Lakers held a double-digit lead at halftime, 63-49, and began to open it up during the early part of the third quarter.

Then the Jazz came back like they did on Sunday. Deron Williams ended the quarter with a three pointer to cut the Lakers lead to 93-83.

Deron Williams put the Jazz on a 11-4 run to start the final quarter and pull within five points of the Lakers, 99-94.

Ironically, it was Derek Fisher who turned the tables on his teammates from last year. He hit a critical three pointer then intercepted an errant Jazz pass that led to a Jazz foul and free throws for Pau Gasol.

That put the Lakers up for good, 105-94 with 4:26 left. The Jazz could get no closer than six points after that. Fisher finished with 22 points, two assists, and three steals.

Phil Jackson credited Fisher for his strong performance at both ends of the court.

"Fisher did a lot of things defensively," Jackson said. But overall, the Lakers coach wasn’t thrilled with his team’s performance.

"(The Jazz) outscored us 21-2 on second-chance points and on points in the paint," Jackson complained and then addressed the Jazz rebounding efforts.

"They crash the boards and get in the lane at the point the ball is coming off the rim…Three or four times, they beat our guys to the ball when I think our guys had inside position."

When asked what he expected to happen when the series moves to Utah for Game 3, the Zen Master simply replied, "No expectation, no disappointment."

Deron Williams, who only managed three points in the first half, exploded for 22 points in the second to go along with his 10 assists. "I decided to speed up my game," Williams responded when asked about the reason for the dramatic turn around.

Williams also said that the Jazz cannot afford to let the Lakers get off to a large lead in the first half. They need to keep it close in their remaining games if they are going to have any chance of winning four out of the next five games.

In order to do that, the Jazz are going to need more scoring from Carlos Boozer, who seems bothered by the Lakers length on their front line. Boozer only managed 10 points and five rebounds.

Paul Milsap’s 13 first half points kept the Jazz in the game. He finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Mehmet Okur had 16 points and five rebounds. Andsrei Kirilenko added 14 points and five assists.

If the Lakers are to have a strong game in Utah, where the Jazz were 37-4 during the regular season, Pau Gasol needs to have a stronger game on the boards. Tonight, he had 20 points and five assists, but only five rebounds.

The Lakers will also need more scoring from Vladimir Radmanovic (two points), Luke Walton (five points), and Jordan Farmar (four points).

Sasha Vujaxcic kept up his clutch performance coming off the bench with 12 points. He hit a critical jump shot in the fourth quarter to snap the Lakers out of a brief cold spell.

If you are not going to be around a TV Friday night, then make sure you set your Tivo. Game 3 in Utah should be a lot different than the first two in Los Angeles.