They’re Feeling Confident About This Road Show

Well, after 15 consecutive victories, what’s three more for the road?

The goals, and the boundaries, are expanding rapidly for a Laker team that has lost once since Nov. 21, has an NBA-best 12-3 road record and is lapping the field so far.

The next test starts here tonight, the kickoff to a three-game swing through the Midwest that moves to Indianapolis and finishes in Minneapolis.

If they win these three, will anything stop the Lakers?

“Friday and Saturday will be real tough, with Indiana and Minnesota,” Laker Coach Phil Jackson said. “I think Minnesota’s playing as good as anybody in the league right now, especially at home.

“And Milwaukee scored 135 on Charlotte [Monday]. So we know they’re an offensive machine with three great scorers on that team. . . . We’ve got great things to do to continue the win streak.”

But Jackson is not setting a low goal.

“I think going on a road trip, I’d normally say to win two out of three would be our expectations, and it would be our hopes we get two out of these three games,” Jackson said.

“But at this level we’re playing, we’d like to get all three of them. And we’re going into every game thinking we’re going to do it. . . . We know we’ve got a target on our chest and go out and perform to that level.”

Forward Glen Rice acknowledged that he has never been on a team that felt so confident about going on a tough trip.

“This is the first feeling for me, saying you want to go on the road and you want to win all three,” Rice said. “I think [Jackson is] absolutely right about that. We have a very good chance of doing that.”

TONIGHT

at Milwaukee, 5 PST

Channel 9 (6 p.m.)

* Site--Bradley Center.

* Radio--KLAC (570).

* Records--Lakers 30-5, Bucks 20-15.

* Record vs. Bucks (last season)--Did not play.

* Update--The Lakers beat the Nuggets by 35 points Monday but face a team tonight that on the same night beat Charlotte by 50. Milwaukee, with Glenn Robinson, Ray Allen (who beat out Kobe Bryant for U.S. Olympic team’s final berth) and Sam Cassell all averaging more than 17 points a game, is third in the league in scoring, averaging 104 points. The Lakers are averaging 99.7 points while giving up 90.6. Shaquille O’Neal leads the league in rebounding, is second in scoring and field-goal percentage, and third in blocked shots. Bryant would be ninth in scoring at 23.2 if he had played enough games to qualify.