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Tuesday, Mar. 13 10:30pm ET
In first game back, Fisher has career night

RECAP | BOX SCORE | GAME FLOW

LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Derek Fisher shocked just about everyone in Staples Center on Tuesday night, especially himself.

Derek Fisher
Derek Fisher returned with gusto Tuesday, with career highs of 26 points and six steals as well as eight assists.

Playing his first game of the season, Fisher had career-highs of 26 points and six steals along with eight assists as the short-handed Los Angeles Lakers beat the Boston Celtics 112-107.

"This is amazing," said Fisher, a fifth-year pro playing in his first game since the NBA Finals last June. "I just wanted to play hard, help out. I really wasn't sure what to expect. I was hoping to play eight or 10 minutes, I definitely wasn't expecting to play 37.

"I'm just thankful to be back here. I've really worked hard to try and get back in this position."

Fisher scored seven straight Los Angeles points, capped by a jumper with 3:32 remaining that snapped a 98-all tie, and the Lakers led the rest of the way. The Celtics weren't closer than three points after that.

Fisher, sidelined since undergoing surgery to repair a stress fracture in his right foot Sept. 20, also had five rebounds while playing all but three minutes in the second half and all but 11 overall.

He scored 12 points in the final period, capped by a pair of game-clinching free throws with 10.9 seconds left.

"It was an incredible game, that's a remarkable game," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. "So much for training camp.

"The six minutes he played were great."

Jackson had said before the game he'd like to get Fisher six or eight minutes of playing time and go from there.

Shaquille O'Neal had 28 points and 11 rebounds, and Rick Fox had 21 points for the Lakers, who won for the ninth time in 12 games despite the absence of Kobe Bryant, who missed his second straight game because of a viral infection.

"He had a whole year of energy stored up in him, and it couldn't have come at a better time," Brian Shaw said of Fisher.

"The whole team and the whole building fed off his energy," O'Neal said. "We haven't had that type of defensive energy in a long time. Fisher was definitely our hero tonight."

Horace Grant added 16 points, and Shaw had eight points, 12 rebounds and seven assists before fouling out with 10:03 remaining.

The Celtics lost their sixth straight road game and ninth in 12 games overall despite Paul Pierce's 42 points, equaling his career high. Antoine Walker had 23 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists for Boston.

"I think this is a game we should have won," said Pierce, who went to nearby Inglewood High before leaving the Los Angeles area to attend Kansas. "I'm at home, it was a game I really wanted.

"It hurts to lose. When you have a performance like this in a game you lose, it feels like a wasted performance. There are no moral victories for us, we're fighting to win."

The Celtics, who blew a 13-point third-quarter lead, remained one game behind Indiana in the battle for the eighth and final playoff berth in the Eastern Conference.

O'Neal, Mark Madsen and Fisher made two free throws each in the final minute to keep the Lakers safely ahead.

A three-point play by Eric Williams, who scored 14 points, capped a 13-5 Boston run to start the second half, putting the Celtics on top 67-54.

Then, with Fisher, Fox and O'Neal leading the way, the Lakers outscored the Celtics 26-11 to finish the third period for an 80-78 lead.

The Celtics led by as many as five points early in the fourth quarter before the Lakers rallied.

Fisher was inserted into the starting lineup, and helped the Lakers get off to a fast start.

When he came out for the first time after playing 7 1/2 minutes, he had four points and three steals and the Lakers led 21-10.

The Celtics then went on a 19-4 run to finish the first quarter and start the second for a 29-25 lead.

Fisher returned and played the final 8:40 of the first half, which ended with the Celtics on top 54-49.

Game notes
The win snapped a two-game losing streak for the Lakers, who haven't lost three straight regular-season games since April 1999. ... The Lakers also avoided their first three-game homecourt losing streak since January 1994. They were coming off overtime losses to San Antonio and Seattle at Staples Center. ... The Lakers had only 10 players in uniform for the second straight game because Isaiah Rider was suspended for five games last week for failing to comply with the NBA's drug policy. ... Bill Russell, who led the Celtics to 11 championships in a 13-year span starting in 1957, attended the game. ... Lakers' forward Devean George fouled out with 8:35 left after playing a total of only seven minutes.

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RECAPS
Milwaukee 101
Toronto 97

Atlanta 109
Vancouver 99

New York 98
Cleveland 79

Sacramento 114
Orlando 108

Dallas 122
New Jersey 98

Houston 127
Indiana 118

Seattle 99
Portland 90

LA Lakers 112
Boston 107


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