Series Index:

Game 1: Lakers 109, Jazz 98 at Los Angeles		Game recap & pictures
Game 2: Lakers 120, Jazz 110 at Los Angeles		Game recap & pictures
Game 3: Jazz 104, Lakers 99 at Utah		Game recap & pictures
Game 4: Jazz 123, Lakers 115 OT, at Utah		Game recap & pictures
Game 5: Lakers 111, Jazz 104 at Los Angeles		Game recap & pictures
Game 6: Lakers 108, Jazz 105 at Utah		Game recap & pictures

Picture Gallery (LADN)

May 4, 2008 - STAPLES CENTER - LOS ANGELES. The Jazz decided to present a physical opposition and although it worked on the boards where they won the rebounds battle 58-41, they also committed too many fouls and the Lakers made their free throws to get a win 109-98.

Kobe Bryant finished with 38 points, 6 rebounds and 7 assists. He spent most of the night in the free throw line from where he got 21 points in 23 attempts, breaking the franchise record of 20 made owned by Magic Johnson and Jerry West. The team made 38 of 46 overall while the Jazz went 22-for-30.

The Lakers took the lead for good late in the first quarter, were ahead 54-41 by halftime and led by as many as 19 points (68-49) early in the third quarter. The Jazz got back in the game immediately with a 15-3 run. It was 91-87 with 4:44 remaining and then 94-89 with 2:39 left. But that was the closer Utah will get before, in a span of 68 seconds, Pau Gasol's 3 baskets (and a free throw by Kobe) put it out of reach. Gasol had 18 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists, Odom added 16 points and 9 rebounds and Sasha Vujacic made the most of his playing time, scoring a career playoff-high 15 points in 16 minutes.

Luke Walton, who was having a great playoffs (shot 22-for-31 and averaged 14 points in the Lakers first round), played despite an upper respiratory infection but wasn't at his best, getting 5 points and 3 rebounds in 13 minutes . For the Jazz, Mehmet Okur had 21 points and a career playoff-high 19 rebounds and Carlos Boozer added 15 points, 14 rebounds and 4 assists before fouling out with 3:28 left

Derek Fisher, who had a particular story with the Jazz last season, guarded Utah's point guard Deron Williams for the most part and had a career playoff-high 6 steals to go with 5 points and 6 assists. Williams shot 5-for-18 to get his 14 points.

Kobe Bryant is expected to receive the MVP trophy from commissioner David Stern before Game 2 on Wednesday night

The Quotes

Phil Jackson (LAL Coach): "It’s an incredible night to have 23 foul shots, I know that Utah’s not going to be happy about it. We’ll probably see about half that in the next game, if not less. So for him to do that, it was our biggest scoring threat of the night right there"

Jerry Sloan (Jazz coach): "It was very, very poor at best. Fouls are what you do when you try and bail out. I’d say that’s very poor defense.”

Derek Fisher (Lakers): "“I think probably what confused him (Williams) was how old I am," he said, laughing. “When he fakes, I don’t go for it because I can’t react that fast so I end up stealing it from him.”

Highlights