Bennett Provides Some Extra Bite Again for Lakers

They took a mold of his upper front teeth right after the game, getting a start on the dental work that will come today.

Two of Mario Bennett’s pearly whites were dislodged, one apparently for good, after he caught an elbow during a jump ball in the third quarter.

The rest of his body, the one that had just produced 12 points, a career-high-tying 13 rebounds and three blocked shots in another unscheduled start at power forward, can not be artificially preserved in its current state, much to the dismay of Bennett and the Lakers, both winners thanks to his big production.

They got a 113-102 victory over the Vancouver Grizzlies before 17,505 at the Great Western Forum on Wednesday night, and he got to push harder for playing time as the playoffs approach. A package deal.

“Mario’s the best [power forward] on this team after Robert [Horry],” Shaquille O’Neal said after getting 30 points, eight rebounds and four blocked shots in the Lakers’ sixth consecutive victory overall and their 10th in a row at home. “He’s active, he hustles, he plays hard.”

And he’s still down the depth chart. Even after Bennett got his second double-double in three games, after he had a showing he could really sink his teeth into, there’s nothing to say he’ll start again Friday against the Phoenix Suns if Horry still isn’t ready.

Corie Blount has something to say about that, after all. Taking advantage of Bennett playing only three minutes in the fourth quarter because of the dental concerns, Blount grabbed 15 rebounds, also equaling his career high, in only 22 minutes. That it came in his first playing time since last Thursday made it even more impressive.

“I felt pretty good,” he said. “That’s the good thing about it. My back didn’t hurt.”

Although Horry was sidelined for the second time in three games by the strained Achilles’ tendon, Rick Fox played after an examination earlier in the day confirmed he had nothing more serious than a sore right foot, keeping alive his streak as the only Laker to start every game.

Given the option of going with Blount, returning after two games on the sideline because of a bruised lower back, or Elden Campbell, Coach Del Harris instead put Bennett in the opening lineup at power forward and hoped for a repeat of the Cavalier game last Friday.

Not so much a statistical repeat, because 21 points and 10 rebounds could not have been anticipated the first time, let alone expected a second. He was looking for something else.

“I like the activity of our lineup when Mario’s going good,” Harris said.

And they were active in the opening half against the Grizzlies. Vancouver stayed close in the first quarter because the Lakers shot 39.3%, but Bennett had seven points, five rebounds and two blocked shots in his opening 10 minutes. He added another two points, two rebounds and one block in only five minutes in the second period.

A second good showing in as many opportunities for Bennett--he played only nine minutes Sunday at Detroit--comes as the playoffs near and he hopes to stick in the rotation. But it’s also a payoff to Harris’ hunch of opting against Campbell or Blount, even as the coach acknowledged those more physical players would have been a better matchup for Vancouver starter Michael Smith.

“He played so well against Cleveland,” Harris said. “Even though the matchup doesn’t make sense, I’m going to give him the ride.”

Harris had, in essence, overruled his own better judgment.

Bennett had made him look good.

Experimenting brought risks, despite Vancouver’s 17-58 record coming in and the fact that they were playing for the second night in a row. The Grizzlies had, after all, just played the Utah Jazz into the final minute Sunday before losing by six points. And that came three weeks after the Lakers couldn’t shake them until the fourth quarter.

Helped by the Grizzlies losing Bryant Reeves because of a sprained right knee after a collision with Derek Fisher in the final seconds of the second quarter--Reeves had averaged 24 points and nine rebounds in the first three meetings--the Lakers made quicker work of things this time. They had a double-digit lead most of the third quarter, going up by as many as 16 points, and were never really challenged after intermission.

When Vancouver got within 12 midway through the fourth period, Harris sent O’Neal in again. When the cushion dipped to 10 soon after, Eddie Jones (26 points, five for six on three-pointer shots) made a jumper, then intercepted a pass at the other end that became a free throw by O’Neal and a 105-93 advantage. When the Grizzlies closed to 10 again, O’Neal scored inside and added a dunk a few possessions later, putting him over the 30-point plateau for the 10th time in the last 16 games.