Odom & Kobe Step Up to Beat Denver in Game 5

Kobe Bryant came through once again in the fourth quarter to beat Denver and take a 3-2 series lead.  As Kobe passed the ball, Lamar Odom and Pau Gasol dominated the paint.

With Bryant luring double coverage then passing to his teammates, the Lakers owned the fourth quarter in a 103-94 victory Wednesday night that gave them a 3-2 lead in the Western Conference finals.

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Bryant scored 22 points — on just 13 shots — Odom had 19 points and 14 rebounds despite an aching lower back and Gasol added 14 points and 10 rebounds.  “It was a big gamble for me coming in, but I wanted to change my approach this game and be more of a decoy,” Bryant said after adding eight assists, several out of double-teams in the fourth quarter. “The past couple games they really were loading to my side and I figured I could be a decoy and try to give chances to my teammates.”

Game 6 is Friday in Denver, where the Lakers lost Game 4 by 19 points  “That place is going to be rocking and rolling,” Bryant said. “We have to stay focused and poised and try to cut them up. Be cold-blooded, go out there and execute.”  So it all came down to the final 12 minutes.

Bryant, Odom and Gasol teamed for all but seven of the Lakers’ 27 points in the fourth. They opened on an 11-0 run for their first lead of the second half and it was capped by Shannon Brown’s jumper that beat the shot clock. “He came in, gave us a huge spark and that’s what you need,” Bryant said of Brown. “It’s about who controls momentum.”

“This Lakers group is really connected,” Jackson said. “They’re driven and they’re motivated to get to where we were last year to give us a chance to win.”

Denver twice led by seven points in the third quarter only to see the Lakers tie it at 76 on a 3-pointer by Bryant to end the period.  In a first half featuring 13 ties, the teams ended up even after both the first and second quarters.