POSTGAME QUOTES



Mike D'Antoni:

On the game:
“A lot of guys steeping up and playing hard. I think in the first half we kind of played around with it. We didn’t really focus hard on the defensive end. This team gives you a lot of trouble. They are athletic. One-on-one they are good. They have been scoring about 110 points since all-star, so we knew that we couldn’t outscore them. You can score, but you have to put some kind of pressure on them. I thought the second half we came out, other than a couple of threes at the end I think we held them to about 40 points and that was good. That was the most satisfying.”

On the team playing without Kobe Bryant:
“Well it is like anything else, that ball moves and there are some good guys out there on the floor. Antawn Jamison has had back-to-back 50 point games in this league. And Steve Blake is starting with a good team and has played really well in this league. Steve Nash is a two time MVP and Dwight Howard is really good. So we don’t have to be one player dominant. That ball needs to move and if it does then we are really good.”

“[Kobe] is so good at what he does and he has been doing it for a long time. It is a different team, different age group and he has come a long way toward facilitating and all that. We just have to keep reinforcing that and getting better at it.”

On why Kobe Bryant did not play tonight and when he will return:
“I think everything…He has the flu, his ankle, and probably 15 other things going on. For this stretch we come home and we get three days off so getting him totally well. And he has to be well for us to even think about doing anything. So I think it was a great decision that he made and Gary Vitti. We will see tomorrow night. I don’t know about tomorrow night yet, but we will see what happens.”

On total team effort without Pau and Kobe:
“I think we’re playing with a sense of urgency. It’s the predicament we put ourselves in and we can only control the things that we deal with right now. With Kobe being out, we know everybody has to step up and play collectively as a group and as of late we’ve been doing that.”

On what Steve Blake has been doing for him:
“I don’t know. All I know is that time together that we had in Washington. He knows when I’m going to cut; I know when he’s looking for me and things of that nature. Ever since he got back we’ve been clicking. That second unit has really been contributing the way we think it should be contributing this year.”

On how to keep this record going forward:
“We have to play with a sense of urgency. We have to play consistent for 48 minutes and if we do that, not turn the ball over, make it a half-court defensive game and offensively execute the way we’ve been doing, we should be fine.”

On key to last games for him:
“I just thank God for the opportunity to be back. It was tough being hurt and watching but it’s been great to be out there with my teammates.”

On groove with Antawn Jamison:
“Just coming off the bench with energy and playing with confidence. Most of my stuff comes off great plays for my teammates, trying to be out there and bringing energy. I’m just trying to help out in any way that I can.”

On comfort of playing on the ball and off the ball with Steve Nash:
“Yeah I think we really are [comfortable]. A lot of teams try to get it out of his hands really quickly or deny him the outlook pass so I can get it and get up there with numbers. If he gets the ball on the back side after we’ve already made a pick-and-roll it just makes us that much more dangerous.”

On the key offensively tonight:
“We just tried to read the floor. They doubled a lot tonight, and I tried to make the good passes out and trust those guys to make the shots. In the pick and roll, Steve [Nash] was able to get going. ‘Twan [Antawn Jamison] was unbelievable tonight. He hit some tough shots and he got some easy slips to the basket. He’s been playing great lately.”

On the key to winning tomorrow in Phoenix:
“Just play hard. For me it starts on defense. I have to control the paint, make sure I come out with a lot of energy, and just protect the basket for these guys.”

On tonight’s performance overall:
“Overall, I’m just happy with our effort as a team tonight. Sacramento is a tough team because they can score the ball from all five positions. We had to really talk to each other, protect the basket, and force them to take threes. They hit a lot of threes, but we didn’t let that bother us from our principles. We stuck with our principles tonight and that’s how we got the win.”

On if the 7-man rotation made him tired tonight:
“I’m a little bit tired. I think everyone’s playing more minutes, but everyone’s playing well and stepping up so it’s been really enjoyable.”

On playing with Steve Blake:
“It’s great. First and foremost, I feel like Steve [Blake] has been phenomenal. Even before Kobe [Bryant] went out, he’s been playing great and he’s been on a great roll. His toughness, shooting ability, and having another intelligent guy on the court really helps our team.”

On the efficiency from the 3-point line tonight:
“Well, I think sometimes you go on runs. We were fortunate to go on a little bit of a run there shooting the ball in the second half, but I thought our defense was better in the second half, and that was the key. We held them to I think 20 in the third, and that gave us that breathing room.”

On Dwight Howard’s defense tonight:
“Dwight [Howard] was great. I think for us we have a game plan that is going to be centered around him being down there making it difficult for guys so we can keep the ball on the sidelines and the baselines. It’s really difficult to contend with him. Even if there is a breakdown, having him back there obviously helps our defense.”

On the 4 on 1 fast break play and the game:
“That’s a big play. That’s a big momentum play right there because you have to make that into a 2 on 1 and we kept the ball a little too long on the side and threw it right back in the middle. That was a big turning point. I think they came back and hit a 3 right after that so, that was a big play but I thought our guys did a great job competing. I thought for a few moments we tried as much as we can to get to the foul line here and there but that wasn’t going to be the case tonight. But I thought these guys competed and put themselves in a great position, and you know, some of their guys played great basketball like they have over their careers. [Antawn] Jamison is not a slouch. Jamison comes in and plays a great role for them and made his jump shots tonight. Steve Blake made some big time 3’s tonight and the other guys were going to do what they do no matter what. Steve Nash was going to do his job. Dwight Howard was going to be his post presence and do his job, but some other guys as they have been playing as of late, have been playing really well.”

On tonight’s game:
“I think when you go back through and look at it, we only had one assist on paper but we also made some passes for open shots. We didn’t make some open shots off of good draw and kicks, but obviously the ball didn’t move and it stopped a little bit. We started to dribble too much and we had one shot clock violation because of that. But these guys played a great game, they had to play a perfect game again but obviously it didn’t happen for us. These guys played a very good game and put themselves in a good position except for a few breaks here and there with our shots and then our decisions on the break. Also, over helping too much and sometimes Dwight Howard will do that for you because he’s going to get some of the smaller players, deep into the paint and you want to help your teammate which ends up being a kick out for a 3. All their perimeter players were making their long range shots tonight and that happens.”

“I think what you do is prepare even with Kobe [Bryant] playing. You just have to play for 2 teams because Kobe’s going to come out the game and run different things. Nash will be more dominant with the basketball, more involved with the pick and roll, and more post-ups for Dwight Howard. Kobe will come back into the game and you go back into your coverage with what you do with Kobe, so regardless if he was playing tonight or not playing, we still had to prepare the same way. The fact that he’s not in there, you don’t have to deal with a lot of 1 on 1 iso’s [isolations] by Kobe where you knew where he would be. Probably hit you with some 3’s, the mid post area game, and then of course the middle pick and roll.”

On what went wrong for the Kings down the stretch:
“We didn’t make shots and we didn’t get fouls called. We just stopped going to the basket and shot a lot of jump shots and they came down and they made all their shots. They were making everything tonight.”

On what went wrong for the Kings offensively:
“Dwight [Howard] did a good job of helping out in the paint. Even though he wasn’t having a good offensive game he still messed with a lot of people’s shots, but I think we got a couple good looks we should have knocked down, but they just weren’t falling for us tonight.”

On the 4-on-1 break for the kings where Steve Blake drew an offensive charge and if it was the turning point of the game:
“That was a good play for them. You know 4-on-1 we’ve got to get a bucket off that. So for them to get a stop their momentum’s going and they come down and they get a three or a layup or something like that that gets them going and they never looked back.”

On what went wrong for the Kings down the stretch:
“I don’t think we moved the ball like we did in the second quarter and the ball got stuck on one side and they’re a great defensive team when you keep the ball on one side and I think that’s probably what happened.”

On if the Kings offense tonight:
“In the third quarter the passing lanes just weren’t there for me to try to get others involved, so I was just in attack mode to try and create something at the rim and I did an alright job at that but they did a good job of taking away the things I wanted and that was to try to get my bigs involved and my shooters involved.”

On tonight’s loss:
“It was tough. They executed their offense and we didn’t execute our defense. They hit a few key threes that opened the game back up. I think they hit about three in a row, or something like that and after that it was just hard to dig back in the game.”

On what the team can take from tonight moving forward:
“That’s the only thing I think we really can take forward is that we didn’t fall back, we didn’t let down, we kept battling, we kept fighting throughout the course of the game and pretty much that’s the only thing you can take from it.”

On the team’s offensive play:
“We were stagnant with the ball just standing around and watching somebody else try to make a play just not moving the ball, not cutting, not setting screens, and when you’re not doing that it makes it a lot easier for the defense.”

KINGS-LAKERS PREVIEW

By JEFF MEZYDLO

With or without Kobe Bryant, the Los Angeles Lakers are confident they can keep finding ways to win.

As their superstar deals with a severely sprained ankle, the Lakers look to build on an impressive road victory with a seventh straight home win Sunday night against the Sacramento Kings.

Though Bryant missed all four of his shots and finished without a point while playing only one quarter, Los Angeles (35-32) pulled out a 99-93 win at Central Division-leading Indiana on Friday. With Bryant shouting instructions and diagramming plays on the sideline, Dwight Howard had 20 points with 12 rebounds and completed a tiebreaking three-point play with 1:30 remaining.

"It was our best win of the season," said Metta World Peace, who had 19 points and seven boards. "It's been an up-and-down year, not to our fans' liking as far as the record is concerned. But I would say it's our best win of the season."

Los Angeles shot 42.3 percent overall, but 13 of 26 from 3-point range and held the Pacers to 37.4 percent shooting to win for the 18th time in 25 games.

The Lakers hold a slim lead over Utah for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

"I just think we're more comfortable, we are playing more together," point guard Steve Nash said. "I'm confident that we can repeat this performance, but we have to keep winning games."

The Lakers might have to do that without Bryant, who tried to play Friday after turning his ankle late in Wednesday's 96-92 loss at Atlanta - their lone defeat in six contests.

"It really just continued to swell and I couldn't put any weight on it, so I called it a night," he said. "I told them before the game, 'I don't know how much I have, but whatever I have, I'll give you.'"

With Bryant hobbled, the Lakers may look to Howard for more scoring. The center has averaged 21.5 points and 15.5 rebounds in the last six games.

Howard was held to seven points and nine boards in a 113-97 loss at Sacramento on Nov. 21, 10 days after he had 23 and 18 in a 103-90 home win over the Kings. Los Angeles has averaged 110.6 points and shot 49.2 percent while winning eight of nine against Sacramento at Staples Center.

The Kings (23-43) are a West-worst 6-28 away from home and have lost 11 of 12 on the road, but they're coming off their most lopsided win of the season, 121-79 at home over Chicago on Wednesday.

With DeMarcus Cousins sidelined by a left quad injury that's left him day to day, Tyreke Evans had 26 points and Isaiah Thomas added 22 as the Kings shot 54.2 percent, scored 27 fast-break points and committed a season-low five turnovers.

After averaging 118.3 points on 51.7 percent shooting during a 2-1 homestand, Sacramento hopes to carry that success to the road.

"(We have to) just stay consistent, talk on defense, make sure we don't (commit unnecessary) fouls, protect the paint - which we've been doing as of late - and make the extra pass," big man Jason Thompson told the Kings' official website. "(It's important) that we're not forcing things in the paint on offense and making it tough on the defense."

Evans averaged 23.7 points on 66.7 percent shooting during the homestand after putting up 9.8 per contest and making 37.5 percent in the previous four games.

SEASON & SERIES NOTES; CONNECTIONS
The Lakers have split the season series with Sacramento so far 1-1 after dropping last season’s series 1-2 for the first series loss to the Kings since 2004-05 (1-3). The two franchises have met 282 times overall and 118 times since the Kings moved to Sacramento. The Lakers lead the all-time series with the Kings 192-90 (84-34 vs. Sacramento). In their last 10 meetings, the Lakers are 6-4 against Sacramento. The Lakers are 18-8 all-time against the Kings at STAPLES Center and 8-2 in their last 10 home contests. On the road, the Lakers are 6-4 in their last 10 games at Sleep Train Arena and have now lost three straight in the state capitol. In recent series history, in 2010-11 (12/3/10 at STAPLES Center), the Lakers defeated the Kings by 33 points, their largest victory over the Kings since a 33-point win 12/22/95. Also in 2010-11 (11/3/10), Kobe Bryant recorded his 17th career triple-double while passing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the franchise leader for career minutes in a 112-100 Lakers victory at Sacramento. On April 6, 2008, the Lakers defeated the Kings by 22 points, their largest victory in Sacramento since a 23-point win 3/23/89. In 2006-07, the Lakers were whistled for 42 personal fouls in their 132-128 overtime victory January 4, 2007 in Sacramento, establishing a new Los Angeles era franchise record. The Lakers last committed 42 personal fouls back on 2/17/57 versus St. Louis when the team was still in Minneapolis. Additionally, the Lakers and Kings combined for 80 personal fouls and 102 free throws on the night, which was, at the time, the most fouls committed by two teams in more than seven years. In 57 career games against the Kings including 49 starts, Kobe Bryant is averaging 27.0 points (6th highest average among all opponents) with a high game of 51 points 1/19/06 at Sacramento. Metta World Peace was acquired by Sacramento 1/25/06 from Indiana in exchange for Peja Stojakovic and played with the Kings through 2007-08. Kings assistant coach Jim Eyen served as an assistant coach for the Lakers under Pat Riley in 1989-90 and Mike Dunleavy from 1990-92 and is married to the daughter (Britt) of long-time Lakers coach/front office member Bill Bertka. The Lakers and Kings haven’t met in the postseason since the 2002 Western Conference Finals. While Kobe Bryant played in that series, no Kings remain on the current roster from that playoff series.

LAST REGULAR SEASON MEETING
Trailing by four with under three minutes to play, the Lakers gave up six unanswered points to fall behind by 10, never got closer than nine the rest of the way and were ultimately outscored 17-5 down the stretch in a 97-113 loss to the Sacramento Kings at Sleep Train Arena. In addition to turning the ball over 20 times resulting in 25 Sacramento points, the Kings outscored the Lakers 50-22 in the paint and 13-4 on the break. Sacramento’s 40-point fourth quarter was the highest scoring quarter the Lakers have surrendered to any opponent since giving up 40 to the Kings in the second quarter of their meeting back on March 9, 2008. Kobe Bryant led four Lakers in double-figures with a game-high 38 points on 11-of-20 shooting. Jodie Meeks came off the bench to score 15 points (3-6 3FG), Metta World Peace totaled 13 points and six rebounds and Darius Morris added 12 points (3-5 FG) in the loss. Pau Gasol (8 points (3-10 FG), 9 rebounds, team-high 4 assists) and Dwight Howard (7 points (2-4 FG, 3- 4 FT), 9 rebounds) were held under 10 points each for just the second time this season. Marcus Thornton came off the bench to lead the Kings with 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting. Tyreke Evans (18 points, game-high 6 assists) and Jason Thompson (13 points, game-high 10 rebounds) were among the six Kings in double-figures.