LA Lakers defeat Charlotte Bobcats 99-97. It took more than four years, but the Lakers finally beat the Bobcats again at home. It was another choppy game, but this time the Lakers didn’t cede the lead at the end of the game. Lamar Odom led the Lakers in scoring with 19 points while Andrew Bynum had 17 points and 14 rebounds. Kobe Bryant after setting the scoring mark on Monday scored a measly five points thanks to tweaking his ankle after getting tied up with Odom who has a penchant for being involved in his teammates’ injuries. Stephen Jackson scored 30 for the Cats while Nazr Mohammed filled in nicely for an absent Gerald Wallace with 23 points. This win now gives coach Phil Jackson the most wins for a Lakers coach.
Atlanta Hawks defeat LA Clippers 103-97. The Clippers remain one of the most frustrating teams in the NBA. They have good wins against the Lakers, Nuggets and Celtics and then they have games like this. The Clippers led by as much as nine points in the fourth quarter after Craig Smith hit two free throws to take a 84-75 lead. But the Clippers went scoreless for three minutes and fouled away, while the Hawks made their free throws to take the lead and the game. Kaman had 17 points and 10 rebounds while Eric Gordon also had 17 points. Joe Johnson was a beast for the Hawks with 34 points, 16 alone in the fourth quarter.
Anaheim Ducks defeat Detroit Red Wings 3-1. Being at home really agrees with the Ducks as they win their ninth in a row at the Honda Ponda. Goalie Jonas Hiller blocked 46 shots continuing to show his appreciation for his contract extension. Ryan Whitney led the scoring in the second minute of the game while Kyle Chipchura and Bobby Ryan added goals to get a 3-0 lead by the middle of the second period. Pavel Datsyuk tried to will the Wings some momentum by scoring a power play goal in the closing seconds of the second period. But Hiller withstood the 16 shots he faced in the third period.
Notable Notes
- The ridiculousness that is college football signing day was on Wednesday. Depending on who you ask USC has either the #1, #8, #10, #5, #7 #[insert any lotto number] ranked recruiting class. From what I can ascertain, UCLA did pretty well, Florida did REALLY well and USC had a good recruit end up not signing to go to a Knicks game? Who cares really? All of the top ranked classes didn’t help USC any this year when they got to the Emerald Nut Bowl. Also ask Notre Dame how those great recruiting classes turned out. One Hawai’i Bowl? Regardless it’s always a great idea to fill a greater sense of entitlement to these athletes.
- Chris Pisar of Neon Tommy is optimistic about the Dodgers chances in 2010.
- Here is Tim Tebow’s Super Bowl commercial thanks to the folks at Comedy.com and Landline TV for Babelgum.
Tonight’s Action
Anaheim Ducks at LA Kings. 7:30 pm FSWest, AM 1150 KTLK (Kings Radio), AM 830 KLAA (Ducks Radio).
California Golden Bears at USC Trojans. 7:30 pm AM 710 KSPN.
Stanford Cardinal at UCLA Bruins. 7:30 pm FS Prime Ticket, AM 570 KLAC.
