Lakers Do an Encore of Seattle Comeback : Pro basketball: SuperSonics blow 13-point lead in the third quarter. Los Angeles has 18-0 run in 112-107 victory.

Bill Bertka, Laker assistant coach, did not have to be strapped onto an EKG machine this time. The deficit was not quite as steep as 29 points. And, this was Game 54 at the end of February, not the playoffs in mid-May.

Still, the Lakers played out a familiar scenario--the comeback at the Coliseum--here Wednesday night. Reminiscent of last spring’s 29-point comeback in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals, the Lakers bounced back from a 13-point third-quarter deficit to beat the Seattle SuperSonics, 112-107.

This comeback victory must be placed on a lesser scale because, for one thing, Bertka didn’t faint this time, and, for another, the SuperSonics were without three starters. But nonetheless it was something of an achievement for the Lakers.

“That was yesterday,” Magic Johnson said of the Lakers’ playoff comeback. “We’ve been down and come back before. But once we come back, we feel we should win.”

It took considerable resources, including Orlando Woolridge’s best game of the season, but the Lakers (41-13) finally snatched back the lead from the SuperSonics in the third quarter. And, as before, the Lakers held the lead and won despite their shaky moments.

Lacking in effort and execution in the first half, the Lakers trailed, 63-53, entering the third quarter. A three-point basket by Seattle’s Nate McMillan 22 seconds into the third quarter gave Seattle a 13-point lead.

Back came the Lakers with an 18-0 run, holding Seattle without a field goal for 7 minutes 12 seconds. By the end of the quarter, the Lakers led by seven and closed out impressively in the fourth quarter behind Johnson and Woolridge.

Woolridge, supplanting A.C. Green at one forward spot for much of the second half, tied his season-high with 24 points. He made 10 of 12 shots, most coming on forays through the congested lane.

Johnson, who led all scorers with 25 points, capped the Lakers’ decisive third-quarter run by making two three-point shots in less than a minute. Sandwiched between those shots was a Woolridge basket.

But the real story Wednesday was the Lakers’ comeback.

Responding to a recent penchant for blowing big leads in the second half, the Lakers held a players-only meeting Tuesday. It didn’t appear to have an effect in the first half when the Lakers certainly seemed uninspired.

Whatever was said and by whom at halftime is unclear. Regardless, the Lakers made amends with as strong a second-half as they have played in about a week.

“They did it,” Riley said, when asked what he told his team at halftime. “They were the ones who made the change. They were disappointed with how they played in the first half. If we would have kept playing anywhere near the way we played in the first half, we would have (lost).”

Laker guard Byron Scott, asked what magical transformation gripped the Lakers at halftime, simply said: “We got cussed out.”

As pleased as Riley was with the Lakers’ increased effort and defensive muscle in the second half, he seemed put off by their lackadaisical start.

“Maybe it was a hangover from Utah (where they lost Sunday night), but we had to work like hell to win,” Riley said. “The guys thought they were going to have an easy game tonight. We caught Seattle coming off a game last night. They had 57 points a game on the bench (Dale Ellis, Xavier McDaniel and Sedale Threatt, all injured). We had everything going for us.”

Except, it turned out, effort. The Lakers trailed by 10 at halftime because they allowed the SuperSonics to drive to the basket for uncontested layups. Seattle also had a 26-18 rebounding advantage, including 12 offensive rebounds for the SuperSonics.

“An indication of what was happening (in the first half) was when (Derrick) McKey wound up and had those two windmill dunks, and nobody contested him. That didn’t happen in the second half.”

A lot of things did not happen for Seattle in the second half, and the Laker defense deserved credit.

The SuperSonics made only 33% of their shots in the second half, most coming from the perimeter.

Riley explained the Lakers’ change in their defensive approach.

“We asked guys to get to people and contest the ball,” Riley said. “We stopped trapping in the second half, but we extended our man defense to the full court. We made their offense come out for the ball.” The result was fewer easy shots for the SuperSonics and more easy transition baskets for the Lakers.

It is in that type of environment Woolridge thrives. As Johnson put it, “If it’s going to be a scramble game, Orlando is at his best in the open floor.”

Woolridge had 12 points in the first half, one of the reasons the Lakers were not out of it at that point. And, after the Lakers took the lead in the third quarter, Woolridge helped sustain it in the fourth quarter.

When Seattle cut the Laker lead to 86-84 with 8:20 to play, Woolridge responded with an inside basket. After a timeout midway through the fourth quarter, Woolridge took a well-placed lob pass from Johnson and dunked it for a 96-88 Laker lead with 5:42 to play.

That was the first of three consecutive Laker baskets for Woolridge. He made a jump shot with 4:44 to play and a fast break dunk with 4:23 to play for a 100-90 lead. Seattle, by all appearances, was history.

“Orlando gave us exactly what we expect from him,” Riley said. “They trapped. It left lanes open and ‘O’ can fill them. He’s good at that type of game.”

Added Woolridge: “I was trying to attack every time. The last few games, I’ve been concentrating on that, when teams are playing me more aggressively.”

Laker Notes

Center Mychal Thompson’s sprained left ankle, which forced him to miss Sunday night’s game against the Utah Jazz, is affecting his chronically sore left heel. Thompson played Wednesday night but not without pain in both areas.

Vlade Divac, on his bruised right knee: “It’s a little sore to the touch, but I can run. I’m OK.” . . . When Divac went down with the injury in the second quarter of the Lakers’ loss to Utah, teammate Mark McNamara was called upon to translate the cross-cultural flow of information. McNamara has learned Serbo-Croatian from Divac.

“Vlade was able to tell Gary (Vitti, the trainer) and Dr. (Stephen) Lombardo what happened to him,” McNamara said. “But when you’re in total pain, like he was, it’s easy to forget your English.