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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
CLEVELAND (AP) -- Watching on TV from the Los Angeles Lakers'
locker room, Shaquille O'Neal saw the latest installment of The
Kobe Bryant Show. And even he would have to admit that Bryant, at
least for one night, looked capable of carrying the team.
|  | | Kobe Bryant made 23 free throws Tuesday in scoring 47 points -- four shy of his career high. |
Bryant scored 47 points -- 23 on free throws -- and Horace Grant
had 19 points and 14 rebounds as the Lakers survived another night
without O'Neal and beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 102-96 Tuesday.
Bryant, playing with both of his shoulders and right elbow
aching, took over when needed. He drove the lane for short jumpers
and pulled up over Cleveland's overmatched guards, who at times
could do nothing but foul.
Bryant went 23-of-26 from the line, breaking eight different
free-throw records, and scored 14 points in the third quarter when
the Lakers opened a seemingly comfortable 19-point lead.
"I'm really hurting right now," Bryant said. "It feels worse
than before the game. But I didn't think about it. I went out
there, blocked it out and sucked it up."
O'Neal missed his second straight game with an injured foot and
didn't join his teammates on the bench, instead staying behind to
receive treatment while watching on TV.
O'Neal has a tendon ailment in his right arch and is having
difficulty pushing off the foot. He'll travel with the Lakers to
Minnesota but will sit out Wednesday night's game against the
Timberwolves.
He's scheduled to visit Dr. Phil Kwong, a Lakers' foot
specialist, and undergo an MRI and CAT scan on Thursday.
"Shaq's injury is not something we want," said Rick Fox. "But
we'll deal with it. Everybody turned it up a notch."
No one more than Bryant, who knows that with O'Neal out, the
scoring burden falls on him.
"I was going to try and be aggressive," he said. "I tried to
go to the line and I tried to draw some contact. Obviously, my
jumper isn't feeling as comfortable as it usually does."
The Cavs, who can't seem to put four good quarters together,
used a zone trap to rally from 21 down and got within 100-96 with
51 seconds remaining on a three-point play by Bimbo Coles.
The Lakers, though, made sure the ball stayed in Bryant's hands
and he hit two more free throws with 17 seconds left to make it
102-96. Bryant shot 19 free throws -- the most ever by a Cavs
opponent -- after halftime and the Lakers went 32-of-38 from the
line.
Los Angeles snapped a three-game road losing streak and won for
just the second time in five games. And with Grant and rookie Mark
Madsen playing with energy and controlling the boards, the Lakers
played for three quarters as if they truly cared about defending
their NBA title.
"We needed a win," said Grant, who matched season-highs in
points and rebounds. "I just came out playing aggressive and we
wanted to get this thing started right. They didn't block me out."
A lingering feud between O'Neal and Bryant over who should be
the go-to guy has contributed to the Lakers' funk the past few
weeks. But with the floor all to himself, Bryant made sure the
Lakers didn't lose to another team they should beat.
Lakers coach Phil Jackson has had to spend time being a diplomat
in the war between his superstars, but he's glad at least he's got
one of them playing.
"He was aggressive and that's OK," Jackson said. "I debate
going in there when there's a crowd and finding an open man is a
better policy. But he accomplished what we had to get
accomplished."
Andre Miller scored 25 points and Coles had 16 for the Cavs, who
lost their third straight and for the 16th time in 21 games.
Cleveland was without Lamond Murray, its second leading scorer, who
was a late scratch with a sprained left ankle.
Late in the third quarter, Bryant backed down Trajan Langdon to
drop in a nice baseline jumper and made six straight free throws as
the Lakers pushed to a double-digit lead. Brian Shaw's 3-pointer
with two seconds left gave the Lakers an 82-63 lead after three.
The Cavs didn't quit and used a 14-2 run to crawl back, but with
a sellout crowd of 20,053 finally fired up, Bryant buried a long
jumper and scored eight of the Lakers' final 11 points.
"It's just another example of when we are the aggressor and
when we are not," Cavs coach Randy Wittman said. "We can't wait
that long. We have to somehow find the answer."
Game notes
Murray seemed fine during warmups and Wittman said he
didn't know his player couldn't go until gametime. ... Bryant's 23
made free throws and 26 tried, broke records by a Cavs opponent
that were held by Michael Jordan. ... The Lakers are 6-1 against
Central teams. ... Bryant's career-high is 51 points against Golden
State on Dec. 6.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
LA Lakers Clubhouse
Cleveland Clubhouse
Shaq will see foot specialist in L.A.
RECAPS
LA Lakers 102
Cleveland 96
Orlando 93
Indiana 86
Toronto 96
Philadelphia 89
Miami 103
Houston 85
Portland 92
Chicago 81
Utah 102
Seattle 88
Sacramento 105
Golden State 79
FROM
ATHLETESDIRECT
Kobe Bryant Official Site
Rick Fox Official Site
Mark Madsen Official Site
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