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BOX SCORE
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GAME FLOW
ATLANTA (AP) – The Atlanta Hawks danced off the court,
celebrating as if they had won the NBA championship.
Actually, it was just one victory in a dismal season, but they
weren't going to let that little detail spoil the fun.
|  | | Brevin Knight, left, and Jason Terry celebrate the Hawks' first win over the Lakers since the 1996-97 season. |
Jason Terry scored 36 points and the Hawks, spurred on by a
record crowd at Philips Arena, held off the Los Angeles Lakers
108-106 Monday night when Kobe Bryant missed a shot at the buzzer.
"After such a long season, with all the trades and all the
injuries, this game was like a big sigh of relief," Terry said.
"It felt like we had won a championship game or at least gotten a
berth in the playoffs."
The Hawks (21-47) won't be going to the postseason, of course,
so this figures to be the brightest memory from their rebuilding
season.
"It was our first loss to a team like this," said Shaquille
O'Neal, who had 27 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and three
blocked shots. "They had a lot of energy. We're supposed to beat
teams like this all the time."
Toni Kukoc added 26 points for the Hawks, including a critical
3-pointer that extended the lead to 107-102 with 56 seconds
remaining after Brevin Knight hit the go-ahead jumper.
Bryant, who scored 27 points, connected on a short shot along
the baseline in the final minute before Rick Fox converted a layup
with 7.6 seconds to go after a Terry miss.
The Lakers fouled quickly, and Terry gave the defending NBA
champions a chance by making only one of two free throws.
Bryant got the ball at the top of the key and squared up for the
tying jumper, but his shot bounced off the back of the rim. The
horn sounded while the teams scrambled for the rebound.
"I had a good look at it," he said.
Bryant exchanged angry words with coach Phil Jackson during a
brief stint on the bench in the fourth quarter. Jackson downplayed
the incident.
"He got upset about turning the ball over," Jackson said. "We
tried to get him to stay on the floor to make passes and he got up
in the air a couple of times and turned the ball over. I just
wanted him to cool off."
After the final miss, Terry slapped hands at courtside with
Atlanta rap producer Jermaine Dupri, who was wearing the player's
No. 31 jersey. The rest of the sellout crowd of 19,707 produced
more noise than the Hawks have heard all season.
"Tonight was different for some reason," Knight said. "We
executed the whole game. We felt confident the whole game."
The Hawks have lost six times when leading after three quarters,
but they didn't waver when the Lakers went ahead 94-93 on Bryant's
two free throws with just over seven minutes to go.
"No one's head dropped. No one was rattled," Knight said. "It
was just the crowd and playing the world champions. That made us
much more focused."
It was the largest crowd for a sports event in Philips Arena
history and only the second sellout crowd of the season for the
Hawks, who won for just the third time in 16 games.
The Lakers' four-game winning streak ended and they dropped
percentage points behind Sacramento for the Pacific Division lead
after their first loss to Atlanta since the 1996-97 season.
The Hawks won for the first time this season with an opponent
scoring 100 points. They were 0-17 until Monday.
O'Neal managed to hit 9-of-12 free throws with the Hawks
employing the "Hack-a-Shaq" strategy to the fullest. Both Nazr
Mohammed and Lorenzen Wright picked up five fouls trying to guard
the Los Angeles center.
The Lakers went to the foul line 34 times – 16 in the fourth
quarter alone _ and shot 50 percent (39-of-78) from the field. In
addition, they thoroughly dominated the Hawks on the boards, 48-27.
But Los Angeles committed 19 turnovers and was shaky at the
defensive end. Terry connected on five 3-pointers, while Kukoc
added 26 points while hitting four treys.
Game notes
Wright was activated from the injured list after the
morning shootaround. He missed four games with a sprained right
thumb. ... All five Laker starters scored in double figures, and
O'Neal, Bryant (12) and Horace Grant (10) all had more rebounds
than any Atlanta player. ... The "Kisscam" segment, in which fans
are encouraged to kiss each other as they're shown on the video
board, ended with a superimposed picture showing O'Neal and Bryant
together. ... Isaiah Rider, who had one trouble-filled season in
Atlanta, was one of three players who didn't see action for the
Lakers.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
LA Lakers Clubhouse
Atlanta Clubhouse
RECAPS
Atlanta 108
LA Lakers 106
San Antonio 98
Portland 85
Seattle 93
Philadelphia 89
AUDIO/VIDEO
 A red-hot Jason Terry was unstoppable, scoring 22 points for Atlanta in the first half.
avi: 1020 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
With 7.6 seconds left, Kobe Bryant gets the loose ball and dishes to Rick Fox to close within one.
avi: 548 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
 Jason Terry hopes tonight's victory over the Lakers will help in the long run.
wav: 118 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Brian Shaw felt the Lakers needed to step it up on the defensive end.
wav: 119 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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