LAKER NOTES

With Hakeem Olajuwon in early and frequent foul trouble, Shaquille O’Neal was guarded effectively for much of Game 3 by Charles Barkley, about half a foot shorter and at least 60 pounds lighter.

Friday, however, looking ahead to today’s Game 4, the Lakers didn’t want to give Barkley all the credit for his muscling defense on O’Neal, who made only nine of 22 shots in 42 minutes--and only five of 14 in the second half.

“[Barkley] obviously did a pretty good job,” Coach Kurt Rambis said. “But I think it had more to do with Shaq’s fatigue than anything else. . . .

“Yeah, he got tired. But I think all the players got tired at some point in time. It wasn’t just him. . . .

“They did a real good job of meeting him early and rooting him off the block, trying to get him to catch the ball as far away from the basket as possible.”

How tough did O’Neal think Barkley’s defense was?

“Not tough at all,” O’Neal said. “I kind of missed shots I don’t usually miss. A lot of arms down there. We just have to come back in Game 4. . . . Look to take better shots and be more aggressive. We’ll be OK.”

Rocket Coach Rudy Tomjanovich had a different view of Barkley’s defensive performance: “He plays his heart out is what he does. He’s just doing a great job of positioning and holding the guy off. It’s just amazing.”

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Game 3 was the Lakers’ first defeat since their regular-season loss to Houston on April 26--a span of seven games and 17 days.

“It feels like we haven’t lost in a while, you know what I mean?” Kobe Bryant said. “So it felt kind of awkward, felt a little weird being in that situation.”

Bryant, who had clamped a lid on Scottie Pippen in Games 1 and 2, holding him to five-of-20 shooting, said he doesn’t foresee many big adjustments against Pippen after Pippen’s 37-point Game 3 scorching.

“I think we have to try to work Scottie a little bit more, on the defensive end, as far as getting Glen [Rice, Pippen’s defensive assignment] more involved,” Bryant said.

The Rockets got Pippen started by running him in the low post, which got him closer to the basket, got Bryant in foul trouble, and set loose his full-court game.

Said forward Robert Horry: “You know, Kobe’s been handling him pretty much on the low post by himself. Just because they get one game, you don’t change your system up.”