Lakers Survive Overtime, Up 2-0 in Finals
June 8, 2009 by Stephen Kersey
Filed under Basketball
In Game 1 of the 2009 NBA Finals, the Los Angeles Lakers had a walk in the park as they crushed the Orlando Magic by a final score of 100-75. Game 2 was a totally different story. In a tough, rugged affair, the Lakers needed overtime to escape the contest with a 101-96 win and a 2-0 lead in the Finals.
Kobe Bryant had almost a perfect outing in Game 1 but had to work much harder this time out. That said, he still finished with 29 points, eight assists and four rebounds. The Magic deserve credit for limiting Bryant to 10-for-22 shooting and forcing him into seven turnovers.
Helping out Bryant on the night were Paul Gasol, Lamar Odom and Derek Fisher. Gasol had 24 points and ten rebounds, Odom had 19 points and eight rebounds and Fisher had 12 points, three assists and three steals.
Kobe Bryant got help from Pau Gasol and others (Image: Zuma Press)
After shooting less than 30% from the field in Game 1, the Magic got much better showings from their star perimeter players. Rashard Lewis had 34 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists, while Hedo Turkoglu had 22 points, six rebounds and four assists. Dwight Howard was also very active, finishing with 17 points, 16 rebounds, four assists, four steals, four blocks and seven turnovers.
Although the 0-2 deficit will be difficult for Orlando to climb out of, the good news is that the next three games will be played in from of their fans. For the Magic to have a legit chance at winning the championship, they’ll need to win all three at home.
As for the Lakers, championship 15 can now be seen at the light at the end of the tunnel.
