Lakers coach Byron Scott dismissed the Clippers as a rival in his pregame conference, saying, “The Celtics? 17 banners. The Lakers? 16. That’s a rivalry.” Or something to that tune, his head was so far up his ass it’s a rough translation.
You just shouldn’t give people a reason to kick your ass. Los Angeles came out banging, putting a ten point lead on the Lakers that they kept until halftime, up 62-56. It’s still the selfish Kobe’s, whereas the ball movement by the Clippers in their first two games has been faster than my eyes can follow.
A gay run in the third quarter almost let the lead slip to the Kobe’s, but Jamal Crawford drained a near halfcourt shot at the buzzer to keep us within four. Blake Griffin dominated the game, scoring 39 total points and missing just one of 11 free throws. The bearded horseman (sorry, Joba) has clearly matured since his struggles at the charity stripe a few seasons ago.
Griffin led the charge with Crawford in the fourth in what became a back and forth contest. After the Lakers took our three point lead with two minutes left on a triple, Crawford responded with the biggest shot of the game, another deep 3. Jack-It-Upasaurus missed a tying three with under 24 seconds left, let out some obscenities, then surrendered to the real champions of Halloween!