Lakers Tie Series

All is well again in Lakerland, where Kobe Bryant looks like the second coming of His Airness and Shaquille O`Neal`s ugly free-throw shooting is no big deal.

Just when you thought the Philadelphia 76ers were on the verge of shocking the universe, order was restored in the NBA Finals by the postseason-history hunting Los Angeles Lakers in a 98-89 victory Friday night at the Staples Center to even the best-of-seven series at 1-all. The Cliff Notes version of Game 2 reads like this: Bryant regained his shooting touch, while O`Neal continued to have his way inside against the Sixers` front line. The Lakers` dynamic duo combined for 59 points, Bryant scoring a game-high 31 to go with eight rebounds and six assists and O`Neal collecting 28 points on 12-of-19 shooting to go with 20 rebounds and nine assists.

The series moves to Philadelphia for Game 3 on Sunday. The Lakers could still post the best playoff record ever at 15-1 if they win all three games at the First Union Center.

Allen Iverson followed his 48-point prime-time performance in Game 1 with a dismal 23-point effort on 10-for-29 shooting. Dikembe Mutombo had 16 points on 5-of-12 shooting and grabbed 13 rebounds. Aaron McKie added 14 points and a team-high six assists.

Philadelphia added drama late when it cut a 13-point, fourth-quarter deficit to six on McKie`s layup and then to five at 89-84 on Mutombo`s sky hook over O`Neal, forcing a Lakers timeout with 3:35 to play.

Mutombo`s layup off an Eric Snow feed made it a 3-point game at 89-86, but Derek Fisher, he of the 0-for-4 bagel in Game 1, buried a wide-open 3-pointer at the top of the key to push the Lakers out to a 92-86 cushion with just over two minutes left. Fisher finished with 14 points.

Iverson answered Ron Harper`s baseline turnaround jumper with a 3-pointer. But a Harper free throw and O`Neal`s final bucket for a 97-89 Lakers lead ruined the Philadelphia comeback.

The Lakers led 49-47 at halftime as Bryant and O`Neal took turns leading the way. Bryant, coming off a miserable 7-for-22 night in Game 1, got off to a quick start, scoring eight of the Lakers` first 14 points. He had 12 in the first quarter on 5-of-9 shooting and finished the half with 16.

O`Neal was 8-for-10 from the floor for 17 points to go with 13 rebounds, while the rest of the Lakers shot just 13-of-37, including 0-for-7 from 3-point range. Despite a visit from his personal free-throw shooting coach on Thursday, O`Neal made just one of six free throws in the first half.

As in Game 1, the Sixers continued to get contributions from the most unlikely sources. Todd MacCulloch, who had 13 points, emerged as the team`s latest super sub in the second quarter, pairing with Matt Geiger as Philly`s most effective front-court duo while Mutombo and Hill sat on the bench with two fouls.

MacCulloch and Geiger combined for 11 points and five boards on 6-of-8 shooting in eight minutes in the second. Brown took out the two reserves with 6:28 left but sent them back out with a minute remaining after O`Neal man-handled Mutombo for 10 points during a game-tying 12-5 run at 45-45.

Iverson ran both hot and cold in the first half. He missed his first five shots but caught fire by hitting five of his next six - including two fadeway jumpers off pretty crossover dribbles -- as the Sixers built a 38-31 lead in the second quarter. Iverson then missed his last four attempts during the Lakers` half-closing 18-9 run.

McKie showed no ill effects from his broken right ankle early on. He scored 10 points, recorded four assists and stuck to Bryant defensively, but made only two of eight shots in the second half.

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Author: 6 ABC - Action News