OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) -- Steve Nash sliced through the lane, broke
down the defense, and created shots for Kobe Bryant time and again,
just the way he has for teammates throughout his brilliant 17-year NBA
career.
So much for an adjustment period.
Bryant had 34
points and 10 rebounds, Nash finished with 12 points and nine assists in
his first game in almost two months, and the Los Angeles Lakers rallied
from 14 points down in the fourth quarter to beat the Golden State
Warriors 118-115 in overtime on Saturday night.
"It's easy. It's
very easy. It's beyond easy," Bryant said about playing with Nash, who
had missed 24 straight games while recovering from a small fracture in
his lower left leg. "You put two guys together who can do opposite
things and it fits extremely well. When I get a rebound, I look to get
the ball in his hands because I know I will be getting an easy shot."
While defense remains an issue for the Lakers, the offense had no problems in Nash's return.
Metta
World Peace and Nash each made a go-ahead 3-pointer in the final
minutes of regulation before the Warriors came back. World Peace scored
20 points, and Nash converted a step-back shot for the final basket in
overtime to lift Los Angeles to its fourth straight victory.
This one had 20 lead changes, eight ties, and a sellout crowd of 19,596 cheering every possession as if it was the last one.
"To
play 40 minutes after seven weeks was more than I could ask for," Nash
said. "I felt in a decent rhythm. I feel positive about it. We'll see
(Sunday). I'll have to keep working on it. I know it will be sore and
painful but I'm used to that."
As well as the Lakers looked at times, the Warriors seemingly had the game in their hands.
Jarrett
Jack scored 29 points and David Lee had 20 points and 11 rebounds in a
disappointing collapse for Golden State, which had won 11 of 14 to get
off to its best start in 20 years. As so often has happened in this
one-sided California rivalry, though, the Lakers took over when it
mattered most.
"This will not put a damper on our Christmas
spirits," Warriors coach Mark Jackson said. "We're excited about where
we're at, and we're excited about where we're headed."
For the first time in a long time, the Lakers and Warriors share that sentiment.
The
38-year-old Nash was injured in the second game of the season, the
former Phoenix star's first with the Lakers, who have struggled for most
of this season without their point guard. Nash showed no signs of rust
throughout the game, and not in the crucial moments, either.
Nash's
3-pointer gave the Lakers a 103-102 lead with a little less than 2
minutes left in regulation. Festus Ezeli answered with an alley-oop from
Jack to put the Warriors back ahead, only to watch Bryant swish a
pull-up jumper from 20 feet on the other end.
After Lee's jumper
gave Golden State the lead again, World Peace made a corner 3 to put Los
Angeles ahead 108-106 with 24.1 seconds remaining. Jack followed with a
tying, step-back shot, and the Lakers took over with 14.9 seconds left
before Bryant missed a jumper over two defenders at the buzzer.
Bryant
made three quick jumpers in overtime, including a fadeaway that left
him pumping his fist near the Warriors bench, to put Los Angeles ahead
by four. He sank 16 of 41 shots and has scored at least 30 points in
eight straight games.
After Stephen Curry's 3-pointer trimmed the
Lakers' lead to one, Nash's step-back shot in the paint over Curry
extended Los Angeles' cushion again. Curry missed a potential tying
3-pointer before Los Angeles grabbed the rebound -- and the game.
"The
guy is a winner," Lakers coach Mike D'Antoni said of Nash, who he also
coached with the Suns. "There was a difference before the game. He
changes everything. He changes the whole perspective."
The Lakers
handed Golden State its most lopsided-loss of the season on Nov. 9, a
101-77 rout in Los Angeles. In the past two months, the Lakers had
continued to slide while the Warriors had become surprising winners.
The
matchup Saturday marked the first time the Warriors faced the Lakers
with a better record through at least 25 games since April 23, 1994.
D'Antoni
said before the game that Nash's return could be a fresh start for the
franchise, especially with more difficult matchups looming, including
one against the New York Knicks (19-7) on Christmas. He said the lineup
with Nash is what he envisioned when the Lakers called him in November
to replace Mike Brown, who was fired after a 1-4 start to his second
season.
With Nash anchoring D'Antoni's fast-paced system, the Lakers had no problem settling in offensively.
They
scored 15 points off 10 turnovers in the opening quarter to take a
31-27 lead. Dwight Howard was in foul trouble throughout, and the
center's absence hurt Los Angeles on the other end, with the Warriors
moving in and around the paint almost unchallenged.
At one point,
Jack juked Nash and every other defender Los Angeles threw his way. He
scored 15 points in the second quarter, sparking a 14-0 run that helped
put Golden State ahead 61-53 at halftime.
The up-and-down pace
had everybody winded. Curry had to ask Jackson to come out for a moment
in the third quarter as Golden State played its fourth game in five
nights. After a brief rest, Curry keyed another surge to give the
Warriors an 88-74 lead early in the fourth quarter.
Bryant
practically willed the Lakers back by himself -- with Nash's help, this
time -- as he has done so often in his illustrious career. He finished
an alley-oop from Nash on the next play with two hands, sliced Golden
State's lead to 90-88 when he dunked after a give-and-go bounce pass
from Howard midway through the fourth, and tied the game at 95 with a
3-pointer in the face of Harrison Barnes minutes later to set up the
frantic finish.
"It was the collective energy we're playing with,
and that's the most important thing," Bryant said, "the fact we're
fighting together as a group through adversity."
NOTES:
Darius Morris started at shooting guard for the Lakers ahead of World
Peace, who had 20 points and seven rebounds in 37 minutes. D'Antoni said
he likes World Peace's energy off the bench, but he will still make
some starts depending on the matchup. ... The Lakers have swept the
Warriors in three of the last four seasons, including all four during
the 2011-12 campaign. They have two more games against each other this
season. ... Carl Landry's put-back layup at the halftime buzzer was
waved off after officials reviewed television replays.
