Lakers Turn It Around

Shaquille O’Neal scored 30 points and Kobe Bryant got 11 of his 15 in the fourth quarter as the Lakers capitalized on the Portland Trail Blazers’ 22 turnovers to claim a 104-102 victory Friday night and a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five first-round series before 17,505 at the Great Western Forum.

O’Neal and Bryant provided the offensive surge that became a 10-0 run and a 93-87 cushion with 3:09 remaining, but this was as much about the Trail Blazers coming undone--to the surprise of no one.

The team that finished tied for 26th in the league in turnovers--only Cleveland, with a rookie point guard, and Vancouver, seemingly with no point guard, were worse--lost the lead by committing four in five possessions, capped by back-to-back bad passes by Arvydas Sabonis. Not that things went much better when the Trail Blazers did hold on. Sabonis missed a straight-away jumper the next time down, which was followed by Damon Stoudamire’s wild shot down the lane that also bounced away.

When O’Neal turned that into a dunk at the other end, the Lakers had the six-point lead they would not relinquish, though making only one of two free throws while going to the line in three of the four possessions showed they weren’t above trying. The Trail Blazers were still within 97-95 until Nick Van Exel took advantage of Stoudamire’s flop to make an open three-point shot for a 100-95 lead with 31.1 seconds left.

Sabonis’ two free throws with 20.2 showing made it a three-point game again, but the Trail Blazers were forced to foul to stop the clock. Van Exel made both attempts with 14.6 seconds remaining, but Gary Grant made a three-pointer for Portland, forcing the Lakers to hang on until the end. Two from Eddie Jones with 4.2 left took care of that, making Sabonis’ basket at the buzzer insignificant.

Having known for weeks that his presence in the opening lineup would become an issue in the playoffs if the Lakers didn’t play well, no matter that they went 29-7 in his regular-season starts and that the 22-3 finish came with him as the starter at the point, Derek Fisher at least won’t have to wait long to find out. Not after the Trail Blazers built their seven-point lead in the first six minutes of the game, putting the Lakers in an immediate hole and leaving it to Van Exel to head the comeback.

This, of course, was not the way Fisher had envisioned what was not only his first playoff start, but his first real playoff action of any kind after having played only 34 minutes in all a year ago as a rookie. Staying true to his low-key personality, he had conceded only some increase in anticipation as the opener approached, but never any pressure.

Nervous as the biggest games of his life approached?

Wrong person.

“You’re talking about a very steady kind of guy,” Laker Coach Del Harris said before the game. “Emotionally, he’s a solid person, and that’s going to help him.”

However . . .

“I’m sure his heart rate is going to be in the mid-100s when they tip this thing off,” Harris added seconds later.

Fisher admitted he was starting to feel the moment--”I tried to keep it under wraps, but there’s definitely a certain level of excitement”--and figured the toughest part would come right before the start, in those 45 seconds or so between when the Lakers broke their huddle and the jump ball.

He did not appear too hyped, making one of two shots and adding one assist without a turnover in seven first-quarter minutes. But it was also his man, Stoudamire, who made a pair of three-pointers in that same time to spark the Trail Blazers.

Stoudamire went scoreless in the next 14 minutes against Van Exel, and then at the end of the half after Fisher returned, but the Lakers were still being forced to play catch-up at home at the start of a series in which they were favored, especially after the Trail Blazers closed the regular season 2-3, with losses to the Nuggets and Grizzlies.

The Trail Blazers took the lead at 9-7 with 8:14 remaining in the first quarter and held it for the rest of the first half, going up by as many as eight points with 47 seconds left before intermission. They then held it for most of the third period too, before the Lakers finally went back ahead at 69-67 on an O’Neal dunk and free throw with 3:27 to play.

By the end of third, the score was 74-74. They were back to where they had started.

*

* GRANT BACK: Gary Grant, who had his best years as a Clipper, was happy to be renewing his personal rivalry against the Lakers. C6

* GAME REPORT: C6

* BOX SCORE: C6

* BULLS SURVIVE: Michael Jordan’s steal and dunk in overtime give Chicago a victory over New Jersey. SuperSonics roll over Timberwolves. C7