FIRST QUARTER

By LONNIE WHITE

May 27, 2000 12 AM PT

Portland: 30

Lakers: 22

Highlight Reel: For the third game in a row, Scottie Pippen broke down the Lakers’ defense with a dunk in the opening period. This time, Pippen blew past Kobe Bryant, around Glen Rice and over Robert Horry for a right-hand slam.

It’s Not in the Box Score: The smoothness of Steve Smith’s offensive repertoire as he took apart Rice with an assortment of moves to the basket.

Winning Number: 14. The total points scored in the quarter by Bryant, seemingly the lone Laker who came to play and was not intimidated by Rose Garden crowd noise.

Wrong Number: Zero. The total points scored and rebounds grabbed in the quarter by Shaquille O’Neal, who missed his only field-goal attempt and appeared confused as he tried to get into the flow of the game.

Leading Scorers: Lakers: Bryant 14. Trail Blazers: Damon Stoudamire 9.

Leading Rebounders:Lakers: A.C. Green, Ron Harper, Rice, Horry and Bryant each with 1. Trail Blazers: Rasheed Wallace and Pippen each with 3.

Lakers did not lead

Portland’s: biggest lead was 13

Second Quarter

Portland: 55

Lakers: 45

Highlight Reel: Veteran Stacey Augmon may not have played much during the season, but he put on a clinic against Bryant in the low post in the quarter. Augmon scored over Bryant with four clever inside baskets.

It’s Not in the Box Score: Pippen, Wallace and Smith were on the bench for the majority of the quarter as Portland went with a defensive lineup led by Greg Anthony, Detlef Schrempf and Augmon to open up a 14-point lead at one point and a 10-point halftime margin.

Winning Number: Seven. The total rebounds grabbed in the quarter by O’Neal, who started to get more involved in the game.

Wrong Number: Four. Total amount of minutes played by Pippen in the quarter as Portland Coach Mike Dunleavy opted to give his veteran leader added rest.

Leading Scorers: Lakers: O’Neal 8. Trail Blazers: Augmon 8.

Leading Rebounders: Lakers: O’Neal 7. Trail Blazers: Wells 3.

Lakers did not lead

Portland’s: biggest lead was 14

Third Quarter

Portland: 71

Lakers: 72

Highlight Reel: In his younger days at Miami of Ohio and with the Cavaliers, Harper was a highlight machine, and he dusted off one of his old moves with an acrobatic layup, which included a mid-air collision with Pippen underneath the basket.

It’s Not in the Box Score: You could almost hear a pin drop in Rose Garden as the capacity crowd went silent after Harper’s one-hand dunk tied the score for the first time at 65-65 with 2:45 remaining in the quarter.

Winning Numbers: 10. The combined total points scored in the quarter by Harper and Green, who both scored just enough to keep the Lakers’ momentum going.

Wrong Number: Zero. The combined total points scored in the quarter by Arvydas Sabonis and Pippen, who were 0 for 4 from the floor.

Leading Scorers: Lakers: O’Neal 13. Trail Blazers: Wallace 7.

Leading Rebounders: Lakers: O’Neal, Green and Bryant each with 2. Trail Blazers: Pippen 3.

Lakers’ biggest lead was 2

Portland’s: biggest lead was 12

Fourth Quarter

Portland: 91

Lakers: 93

Highlight Reel: Harper might not be a go-to guy, but he showed why he is still valuable when he drifted to an open area and waited for Bryant to find him for the game-winning basket, which he made from the left corner.

It’s Not in the Box Score: How Pippen and Rick Fox stopped shoving each other when Laker Coach Phil Jackson walked into the middle of their disagreement midway into the quarter.

Winning Number: Six. The total points accounted for in the quarter by Laker reserve point guard Derek Fisher, who scored two baskets and assisted on a third with an alley-oop pass to O’Neal.

Wrong Number: Two. The total rebounds grabbed in the quarter by the Trail Blazers, compared to 10 by the Lakers.

Leading Scorers: Lakers: O’Neal and Bryant each with 5. Trail Blazers: Pippen 8.

Leading Rebounders:Lakers: Horry 5. Trail Blazers: Pippen 2.

Lakers’ biggest lead was 9

Portland: did not lead

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

LAKERS’ BIG 3

O’NEAL

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Fri. Playoffs 26 Points 30.5 12 Rebounds 15.2 3 Assists 3.1

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BRYANT