Lakers ease back into it

It came a few days too late for their taste, but the Lakers disposed of an Eastern Conference rival from the ‘80s.

It was Philadelphia, not Boston, but it was a victory, and a convincing one at that, 124-93, Friday night at Staples Center.

The Lakers started an easy stretch of the schedule -- six of seven games against teams with losing records -- by dominating from start to end, leading by as many as 25 in the second quarter on the way to a breezy night. They never trailed in their most lopsided victory of the season.

Andrew Bynum recovered from a meager showing against the Celtics to post 17 points, 16 rebounds and three blocked shots.

Ronny Turiaf had 15 points and tied a career high with five blocked shots in place of Lamar Odom, who sat out because of a one-game suspension for a flagrant foul on Boston guard Ray Allen.

Derek Fisher continued to provide a steady stream of points, scoring 17, and Kobe Bryant kicked back with 15 points on five-for-nine shooting in 29 minutes.

On top of it, Phil Jackson passed Boston Celtics legend Red Auerbach with his 939th career coaching victory, good for seventh all-time in the NBA.

All in all, it was exactly what the Lakers failed to do numerous times last season -- beat up an inferior team.

“We haven’t put it in the past yet, but it’s something we definitely need to do,” Bynum said. “We need to get all these games and improve our record.”

The fans sensed the end of it and began heading for the exits with 5:58 to play, the Lakers ahead, 109-76. It was a different feeling in the building compared to the deflated sentiment after the team’s one-sided 110-91 loss Sunday to the Celtics.

The Lakers had their problems with under-.500 teams last season, somehow managing to go 3-10 against Charlotte, Milwaukee, New York, Portland and Memphis.

They had no such issues with the 76ers (14-19), who had been playing better since losing to the Lakers two weeks ago, 106-101, but looked lethargic Friday in the fifth game of a six-game trip.

The Lakers (20-11), on the other hand, seemed refreshed, if not revitalized.

It had been a quiet work week since the loss to Boston. Jackson gave the players two consecutive days off, a true rarity, and then brought them back for two days of practice leading up to Friday.

It seemed to help.

Bynum looked significantly better than he did in the eight-point, two-rebound, six-foul clunker he had against Boston.

In the first quarter, he had an up-and-under move that got Philadelphia center Samuel Dalembert out of the way. Bynum missed the shot, but got the rebound and dunked. He also scored on a running hook in the quarter. Later, he started his dribble from the top of the key, blew past backup center Calvin Booth and dunked.

He had 14 points and 12 rebounds as the Lakers built a 64-40 halftime lead. He substantially outplayed Dalembert, who finished with six points and two rebounds in 17 minutes.

“He was aggressive early on,” Jackson said. “I like the way he tried to use the post position that he had the first half.”

Said Bynum: “I think I had two pretty poor games in a row -- Utah and Boston. It was great for me to bounce back today.”

The Lakers made a laudable 66.2% of their shots, their best shooting night since they made 67.8% in a 130-108 victory over Phoenix in November 1984, and scored 68 points in the paint.

Over the next week and a half, they play Indiana, Memphis twice, New Orleans, Milwaukee and Seattle, with the Hornets the only team among them with a winning record.

At the very least, they probably won’t be claiming any feelings of fatigue. None of their starters played in the fourth quarter Friday.

Javaris Crittenton had a career-high 19 points, Jordan Farmar scored 16, and Trevor Ariza had 11 after being moved back to the bench in favor of Luke Walton.

Those fans who stayed cheered enthusiastically when undrafted rookie Coby Karl hit his first career field goal, an off-balance runner with 9.3 seconds to play.

It was that kind of game for the Lakers. Everyone who suited up contributed. And everyone was smiling afterward.

mike.bresnahan@latimes.com