New Orleans Hornets stun the Los Angeles Lakers again; series tied at 2-2
Jarrett Jack scored all his five points in the final 9.3 seconds of the game. Those five points however proved to be the difference on the night as the New Orleans Hornets
stung the Los Angeles Lakers by 93-88 and also levelled the series 2-2 in the round 1 of the best-of-seven series. The extravaganza took place at the New Orleans Arena, New Orleans, on April 24th, 2011.
The Lakers could not do anything to hold off Chris Paul who scooped out a tenacious triple-double, his first one this year. It was a joy to watch the 25-year-old point guard
clinching 27 points, dishing out 15 assists and grabbing 13 rebounds in duration of 43 plus minutes on the floor. The Lakers could barely breathe as they watched him sink 11-of-11 free throws and finish with a 7-for-14 shooting from the field.
Trevor Ariza was also in his zone on Sunday night. The mercurial forward contributed 19 points, grabbed six rebounds and three dimes as the Hornets Kept the Lakers wandering
throughout the game.
For the Lakers, Kobe Bryant posted 17 points, dished out eight treys and pulled off six caroms in 36 minutes of action. Pau Gasol also played tremendously after going through
a slump in the last three games to finish with 16 points, four dimes and four rebounds.
Replay
The Lakers started brightly and managed to take a 25-22 lead in the first quarter of the game. Gasol made eight of his total 16 points in the very opening quarter. New Orleans
were quick to respond early in the second quarter though as Carl Landry and Aaron Gray slipped two consecutive shots to cut the lead, 26-25.
The Lakers showed no signs of retreat though and by the 8:12 mark of second stanza, they took the command of the game back, racing to a 34-28 lead. The Hornets, who were
trailing, 39-45, with just 3:23 left in the halftime break, closed their defence and forced the Lakers to miss an array of shots. The home team opened up a 12-0 spurt during that stretch as they closed the first half with a 49-45 lead.
Third quarter proved to be a cat-and-mouse chase. The Lakers and Hornets fought hard to gain possession of the ball. Lakers notched eight free throws and Hornets clinched
two three-pointers to carry a two point lead into the final quarter, 69-67.
Paul hit a three-pointer and Ariza clinched a free throw that gave the Hornets an encouraging start in the final quarter and propelled the lead to 73-69. Paul erupted with
14 points in the final quarter to lift the Hornets and defeat the Lakers by a margin of five points, 93-88.
The Lakers host game 5 of the series at Staples Center on Tuesday, April 26th, 2011.
Tags: