Lakers Come Up Short

The Lakers went again to the final moments, to the place where they’d taken so many of their recent victories, and the Sacramento Kings finished them instead.

Kobe Bryant missed the last three-point attempt in the seconds before the buzzer, having front-rimmed it from 25 feet, then spun to face a nearby referee, who shook his head. No help, a night later.

The Kings were 103-101 winners at Staples Center on a Thursday night taut with the memories of recent seasons, ringed by the curiosity of the coming months.

Playing to the wee tenths of the last seconds for the second time in 26 hours, the Lakers were beaten by the three-pointer, Mike Bibby’s standing in the general proximity Kareem Rush had Wednesday night. And a King team that lacked three of its critical members -- Chris Webber, Brad Miller and Bobby Jackson -- beat the Lakers for the second time in two games this season.

The significance of a late February loss on the rear end of a back-to-back, of a postgame locker room that wondered about Bryant’s final shot selection and of Shaquille O’Neal’s relatively minor role in the offense was vague. The TNT studio crew, including Magic Johnson, had its theories, none of them quite supportive of Bryant.

“Obviously, with these two teams, there’s more to talk about, more to write about,” Laker guard Derek Fisher said. “But it’s not any more disappointing than losing to another team. It’s just another loss we didn’t need.”

Their five-game winning streak ended in their inability to defend the perimeter, in 37 points by Peja Stojakovic and 31 by Bibby. The Kings made 12 of 24 three-pointers, many at the expense of the Lakers’ pick-and-roll defense, such as it is.

Stojakovic was seven for 11 from the arc and Bibby was five for 10, Bibby’s last two in a late 45-second span that put the Kings ahead, 103-98. He danced the length of the floor after the second, celebrating what would become a six-game lead over the Lakers in the Pacific Division.

“This sets us apart even more,” Bibby said, presumably still talking about the standings.

Still on the offensive roll he took out of the All-Star game, Bryant scored 35 points. In six games, he has averaged 34 points and 7.7 assists and shot 55.1% from the floor. Against the Kings, he had 11 rebounds.

Bryant remains committed to left-handed shots and bank shots, recent additions to his game. He made 12 of 28 shots against the Kings, less than 50% for the first time since he got hot and took charge of the offense.

“We have to get the ball inside,” O’Neal said.

O’Neal hasn’t been particularly dominant for three games, in part because of Bryant’s dynamic game and in part because the offense hasn’t found him amid the double-teams. He had 24 points and 10 rebounds but took only 12 shots. He missed seven of 13 free throws, including his last three in the final five minutes, two with 1:56 remaining.

Gary Payton played 30 minutes, six in the fourth quarter, and scored eight points.

It all left the Lakers two points back, the ball in Bryant’s hands, about 14 seconds left. Bryant, who made a three-pointer to bring the Lakers to within 103-101, pulled up at the top, Doug Christie nearby, when a two-pointer might have brought overtime. Christie, Bryant claimed, grazed his face on the release.

“I’ll still take that shot any day, even with him hitting me across the face,” Bryant said.

It would do nothing for the mood of the King-Laker rivalry that Rick Fox held out his fist before the opening tip and Christie touched it with his.

Fox and Christie famously fought on the same floor two exhibition seasons ago, a skirmish that concluded with Fox’s dash through the hallway, where he ambushed Christie, leading to unprecedented tension in the rivalry.

By halftime, the Kings had been called for a flagrant foul (Gerald Wallace) and two technical fouls (Christie, Vlade Divac).

Toward the end of the second quarter, Bryant, believing he’d been fouled, griped at referee Gary Zielinski, “You know what, that’s twice.”

To which Divac snapped, “Don’t let him talk to you like that, man.”

The Lakers arrived from Denver early Thursday morning and Coach Jackson scheduled a shoot-around for 5 p.m. at Staples, a memo Slava Medvedenko apparently missed. He was late and as a result lost a start to rookie Brian Cook.

The Kings made seven of their first nine three-point attempts, all in the first quarter, when it appeared the Laker defensive strategy was to hope Stojakovic’s arms would tire.