Stop Bucks Here? Not the Lakers

Their heads dropped. They dragged their sneakers across the floor. The Lakers could barely stand to carry themselves away, not like this, not with another defeat, not when victory was so near.

Another average team beat the Lakers, who apparently are saving their defense for another day.

This time it was the Milwaukee Bucks, by 109-105. Sam Cassell made an open 15-footer to give the Bucks the lead with 3.7 seconds left, then three free throws to clinch the victory Tuesday night at Staples Center.

The Bucks, who twirled off the floor with smiles on their faces, buried the Lakers beneath 61 second-half points. Ray Allen scored 35. Glenn Robinson scored 26. Cassell had 25.

“We never ever should lose to that team. Ever,” Shaquille O’Neal said. “We just have to play better defense.”

The Lakers had led, 105-104, with less than a minute left. Then they missed two shots, and they committed a critical turnover on an inbounds play, and they could not stop Cassell, who scored after a Kobe Bryant miss, Rick Fox calling frantically for his teammates to get back on defense.

Asked if the game would have ended differently had he taken more shots in the fourth quarter, O’Neal said, “Yeah, I know it does. It’s frustrating. If we play defense and we play like we’re supposed to play, we wouldn’t be in these situations. Guys have to step up to the challenge personally.”

The Lakers lost for the third time in four games, then boarded their flight to Portland, where they again will be required to summon up a little defense.

Phil Jackson pointed. He shouted. He scolded. And he drew it on the little white clipboard he holds.

In the final minutes of another disheartening defeat, he asked the Lakers to include the only basketball player in the NBA who simply cannot be guarded. O’Neal scored 26 points, but did not have the ball many critical possessions.

Bryant made eight of 31 shots and scored 25 points. The 31 attempts matched his career high.

While O’Neal waved his hand and backed toward the rim, the Lakers launched outside shots. O’Neal shot only six times in the fourth quarter, though the Bucks could not hold him.

As a result, the Lakers lost their third home game. Last season, they lost five.

The Lakers’ three recent losses came against teams with sub-.500 records.

“After 23 games, we are no longer being blindsided,” Fox said. “For one night, these teams that have all the problems in the world, who are fighting and maybe not even playoff-bound, they are coming together.”

The Lakers again had their defensive troubles.

“Old habits are tough to break,” Jackson said. “It takes a while. The emphasis is there, so our focus should be better.”

The Bucks shot over their focus, and the Lakers labored to keep up.

Bryant, wearing white tape on his right little finger, made two of 10 shots in the first quarter. While he was more accurate in the second quarter (three for seven), he appeared to jam his right hand on the rim on a dunk, and spent the next few minutes flexing and unflexing his hand. The diagnosis was a sprain, and X-rays were negative.

Rookie Mike Penberthy, who has a sore right knee but doesn’t seem to mind, made all seven of his shots and scored 16 points. Twice he drove for fastbreak layups with Bucks on his back, making artful moves to twist away from the trailers.

The crowd loved his effort, and when he was replaced in the lineup by Isaiah Rider, Penberthy received a standing ovation.

The Bucks went about their usual business of one-on-one basketball, and when it was done, had easily surpassed the Laker opponent average of nearly 98 points a game, despite the extra defensive work the Lakers had done in El Segundo.

In his final home game as an undergraduate, O’Neal nearly fouled out the Buck front line before the game was 12 minutes old.

Rookie Joel Przybilla started at center for Milwaukee and drew his third foul 6:37 in, with the score tied, 13-13. In came Ervin Johnson, who fouled twice in four Laker possessions. Two-and-a-half minutes later, Johnson was out.

O’Neal drew three fouls as well and therefore played only 16 minutes in the first half.

The Lakers were three for 10 from the three-point line in the first half, continuing their trend of poor perimeter shooting. Since he carried a season-high three-point percentage of 43.5 eight games ago, Bryant has made eight of 28. At the same time, his overall field-goal percentage had risen nearly a point, to 47.1.

TONIGHT

LAKERS at PORTLAND

7:30

Ch. 9, TNT

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