Tired Lakers Stay Awake Long Enough

After having their nap time cut short by Pat Riley, the Lakers finally awakened here Sunday night, though they nearly were caught dozing at the end of their 130-127 win over the Golden State Warriors.

Upon arriving here from Phoenix Sunday morning, where they had been beaten by the Suns the night before, Riley took the team directly to the Oakland Coliseum Arena instead of the team’s hotel.

For the next three hours--almost long enough to take in a double feature--the Lakers watched film and were informed by Riley that rookie Milt Wagner and Kurt Rambis would be in the starting lineup against the Warriors.

“It was time to work,” Riley said after the Lakers held off a late rally by Golden State, which cut a nine-point Laker lead--126-117 with 2:15 to go--to one point, 128-127, with 15 seconds left before Byron Scott sealed it with two free throws.

“When you get in this kind of situation, you can’t say, ‘We’ll get ‘em tomorrow night,”’ Riley continued. “We had to take a good hard look at what was going on. When you see it on film, you’re looking at ultimate truth.”

Or, as Mychal Thompson put it: “We got a crash course on why the Lakers are the Lakers. We had to get off our butts and play ball like we wanted to win instead of being afraid to lose. That’s what it was all about.”

Thompson responded with 28 points--the most he’s scored as a Laker--and 10 rebounds, 6 on the offensive boards--in a season-high 36 minutes.

And Wes Matthews, whose erratic play as Magic Johnson’s fill-in led Riley to start Wagner instead, came off the bench to score 18 points and dish off 13 assists. He had eight points in the final quarter, including two straight jumpers in the last two minutes to turn back the Warriors.

“That’s why we got Wes,” said Riley, who grasped Matthews’ hand firmly and patted him on the back at game’s end. “He drilled some big jumpers and he was the only one penetrating.

“I thought he played a great game. Maybe tonight was a breakthrough.”

The timing could have been better--Johnson (groin strain) and Cooper (sprained ankle) are strong candidates to return for Tuesday’s game against the Houston Rockets at the Forum. But after losing four of the previous five games that the Lakers had played without their floor leader, Riley was pleased that they avoided another pratfall.

“We found a way to win,” Riley said. “They key was regardless of who the opposition is, we had a good performance when it counted the most.

“They didn’t bring us to our knees. And that’s what we had to get through.”

Byron Scott helped make sure of that with 29 points--including three three-point baskets--6 rebounds, 4 assists and 5 steals, while James Worthy had 21 points and 7 assists.

The Lakers are now 5-0 against the Warriors this season, and should they beat the Warriors at home on the last day of the regular season, it would give them their second series sweep against the Warriors since 1962.

This is a Warrior team even more short-handed than the Lakers--center Ralph Sampson and leading rebounder Larry Smith are both out for the season.

“This is probably the most frustrating period I’ve had in coaching,” said Golden State’s George Karl. “But I’m really proud of what our guys are doing.”

He also was shocked at what Matthews did to the Warriors down the stretch.

“Wes Matthews made some shots tonight that we didn’t think he could make,” Karl said.

Of all the Lakers, Thompson may have been playing best in the absence of Johnson and Cooper. Against the Suns Saturday night, he had 21 points and 13 rebounds, the most he’s had as a Laker. In five games before Sunday, he was averaging 15.8 points and 9.8 rebounds.

“We’d been playing him 20 minutes--it’s easy to get in that routine,” Riley said. “We have to get him more time.”

Thompson wasn’t worried.

“I didn’t mind the minimum minutes,” he said. “I’m saving my legs for the playoffs.

“Look at who’s playing in front of me (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar). How can I complain?

“I don’t watch the clock to see how long I’m sitting or playing.”

The Warriors have now dropped five straight and are 16-48 overall, 34 1/2 games behind the Lakers in the Pacific Division. They lost Sunday night even though four players--Rod Higgins (21), Ben McDonald (22), Chris Mullin (22) and Otis Smith (23)--scored better than 20 points.

“If you were going to the playground and picking up sides, you’d pick a lot of our guys over theirs,” Riley said. “But games aren’t always won on paper.”

Sometimes, as the Lakers demonstrated Sunday, they can be won hours before they’re played.