CARMELO’S NUGGETS DRAINED BY ARIZA’S SNATCH

Bruin/Laker Trevor Ariza’s huge steal with 30 seconds left helps L.A. sack the Nuggets 105-103, despite trailing for most of the game

Another Laker Playoff Victory, another double-Bruin 4th quarter contribution, and this time, the contribution included the game-saving Play of the Night.

The Denver Nuggets came into town fired up, riding high as the hottest team in the Conference, having won all their victories by double-digits.  They started off sizzling, led by an en fuego Carmelo Anthony.  While Kobe was just getting warmed up, Carmelo was dominating the game, as Denver built a 13-point lead.

But the Lakers finally started to concentrate on Team Defense, making all the right adjustments to slow the Nuggets down.  And with the Nuggets still ahead in the 4th quarter it was Kobe and the Bruins who came through.  Jordan Farmar, whose place in the rotation got lost due to his (anticipated by Phil) inability to cover Chauncey Billups, hit a big three in the last quarter, and Trevor Ariza hit one too.   But it was Trevor’s big defensive play that put the Lakers in control.

In the final minute of the game, the Nuggets were down by 2, bringing in the ball.  But thanks to uncanny anticipation and instinct, Ariza lunged ahead of Billups and snagged the inbounds pass.  Clever Trevor then ran down some clock, and then Kobe’s Free Throws (which gave him 40 points for the night)  forced Denver into desperation time.  They ended up purposely missing a free throw with 3 seconds left, but Kobe got the rebound to preserve the 2-point triumph.

Denver showed that they belong in this series.  And when the series shifts up to the Mile High Altitude, the Lakers will be hard-pressed to win.  That makes Game 2 like a must-win.  But will the inconsistent Lakers see it that way and come out fired up, or will they once again play like they know that they can win when they HAVE to?  All Phil has to do is insert his Bruins and give them more time — Because their Bruin Pride will rub off on their teammates, and everyone will start playing harder.

And now here’s the report of how all the trojans who are still alive in the Playoffs are doing:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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