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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
LOS ANGELES (AP) – The closer the playoffs get, the better the
defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers look.
|  | | Minnesota's Rasho Nesterovic, left, and Kevin Garnett, double-team Shaquille O'Neal. |
Shaquille O'Neal scored 31 points and Kobe Bryant added 30
Thursday night as the Lakers beat the Minnesota Timberwolves
119-102 to extend their winning streak to a season-high six games.
"I've always liked our chances, the sky's the limit for this
team," O'Neal said. "We're playing very, very well, we're playing
together, we're playing with a lot of confidence. We just want to
be well-prepared going into the playoffs; we will be."
The playoffs start April 21.
O'Neal, who scored 21 of his points in the first half, also had
12 rebounds and six assists. Bryant scored 17 of his points in the
third quarter, and also had five rebounds and nine assists.
"They're starting to jell together, they've got a title to
defend," said Minnesota's Anthony Peeler, a former Laker. "Shaq's
looking real good, he's posting up in the right areas, they're
waiting for him.
"They're the champions, everyone's got to go through the
Lakers. They've got the rings, they're the team to beat."
The Lakers clinched fourth place in the Western Conference
playoff race, but they remain one game behind the Pacific
Division-leading Sacramento Kings.
The Lakers (54-26) have two games remaining -- both at home --
while the Kings (54-24), who beat San Antonio 107-105 in overtime
Thursday night, have four left -- three on the road and one at home.
Should the teams finish in a tie, the Lakers earn the division
title by virtue of winning the season series 3-1.
The loss was only the fourth in 12 games for the Timberwolves,
who clinched their fifth straight playoff berth earlier this week.
"I like the way we're playing as a unit," said Lakers coach
Phil Jackson, whose team beat another playoff-bound team handily --
the Phoenix Suns -- two nights earlier. "This is as much fun as the
team's had, I'll tell you that."
Rick Fox added 16 points and six rebounds for the Lakers, who
scored the game's first 11 points and led all the way.
"As I told our guys, you can't fall behind like that against a
good team," Timberwolves coach Flip Saunders said. "I thought
they just came out and played more aggressive.
"For us, we have a difficult time with Shaq inside. A lot of
teams do. When we got close, they went to Shaq. And Kobe was
phenomenal in the second half."
Terrell Brandon led the Timberwolves with 21 points, making
10 of 14 shots. Kevin Garnett added 15 points, eight rebounds and
seven assists, and Peeler also scored 15 for Minnesota.
After the Timberwolves got within three points, the Lakers
scored eight straight -- six on a pair of 3-point shots by Fox -- for
a 64-53 lead early in the third quarter. The Timberwolves weren't
closer than six points after that.
Bryant, playing his second game since sitting out nine of 10
games with a sprained left ankle, scored his team's last nine
points in the third quarter, which ended with the Lakers on top
84-71.
"We feel like we're playing well," Bryant said. "There's a
great deal of improvement to be made, obviously, but this is the
start of us really building our rhythm."
It was 11-0 before Brandon made a jump shot, the first Minnesota
basket in eight attempts, and a flying dunk by Bryant made it 17-4
with only a little over 4 1/2 minutes elapsed.
It was 34-19 before reserves Felipe Lopez and Chauncey Billups
scored six points each as the Timberwolves went on a 16-7 run to
start the second period, cutting the Lakers' lead to six points. It
was 51-44 at halftime.
Game notes
Garnett had a season-low 11 points in a 104-99 loss to the
Lakers in Minnesota last Sunday. ... The Lakers have won 14
straight home games against the Timberwolves dating to 1993, and 21
of 23 overall in Los Angeles since the Minnesota franchise was
formed in 1989. ... The Lakers lead the all-time series 38-9. ...
The Lakers had won five straight games twice previously this
season. They had winning streaks of seven, 11, 16 and 19 games last
season, when they finished with a 67-15 record and won their first
championship in 12 years. ... Play-by-play announcer Chick Hearn,
still going strong at age 84, has broadcast 3,299 straight Lakers
games since 1965. ... Minnesota reserves outscored their Los
Angeles counterparts 24-1 in the first half and 46-27 overall.
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Minnesota Clubhouse
LA Lakers Clubhouse
RECAPS
Charlotte 88
New Jersey 78
Milwaukee 115
Utah 93
Orlando 101
Philadelphia 77
Sacramento 107
San Antonio 105
Portland 100
Vancouver 87
LA Lakers 119
Minnesota 102
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