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OKLAHOMA CITY -- Three games into his comeback from injury, Kobe Bryant remains a work in progress for the Los Angeles Lakers. wholesale nfl jerseys . While Kevin Durants Oklahoma City Thunder continued their early season roll Friday night. Durant had 31 points, eight rebounds and five assists, Russell Westbrook added 19 points, 12 assists and eight rebounds and the Thunder routed the Los Angeles Lakers 122-97. Serge Ibaka added 19 points and 10 rebounds for his 11th double-double of the season and Reggie Jackson also scored 19 for Oklahoma City, which has won five straight and 13 of its past 14 games. The Thunder are unbeaten in 11 home games this season and have won four straight at home over the Lakers. "We have a pretty good team," Oklahoma City coach Scott Brooks said. "Thats been the case for a while now. One of the things that I tell the guys, every season has its own identity. "We started the season knowing that we wanted to ... just continue to build trust in each other and just focus on each other and not worry about anything else, but trying to make your teammates look good. Its early, but weve done a great job with that." Los Angeles has lost all three games since Bryants return from a torn Achilles tendon. Bryant had 13 assists -- just two shy of his career high -- but showed little of his trademark offensive ability, finishing with four points on 2-of-6 shooting. He played 23 minutes and sat out the fourth quarter with the game out of hand. "There is no secret formula that you can sprinkle out there," Los Angeles coach Mike DAntoni said. "Hell get more comfortable, then the guys will get more comfortable around him and then hell do a better job." Nick Young led the Lakers with 17 points. Xavier Henry, playing in his hometown, scored 15 points for Los Angeles while Pau Gasol had 14 points and seven rebounds. Oklahoma City made quick work of the Lakers, setting season highs with 38 points in the first quarter and 66 points in the first half. Oklahoma Citys lead was mostly in double digits from the three-minute mark of the first quarter on. The Thunder finished with a season-high 34 assists and outrebounded the Lakers 59-41. "Theyre a good team and they just beat us," DAntoni said. "Thats number one. Our defence is not keeping it in front of us right now and offensive rebounds, its been a problem for us for a while. We turn the ball over too much. Its a combination of them outrunning us and them getting to the boards." The Lakers played without three injured point guards -- Steve Nash, Jordan Farmar and Steve Blake -- forcing Bryant into the position even as he works his way back from his injury. Los Angeles committed 19 turnovers, including seven by Bryant. Los Angeles jumped to a quick 13-7 lead and briefly looked as if it might stay with the Thunder, but Durant exited a timeout with a dunk and a 16-foot jumper to ignite an 18-3 run that put Oklahoma City in control. A 10-0 run by the Lakers early in the second quarter pulled them within 44-38, but Oklahoma City answered with a 12-0 spurt and the lead remained in double digits the rest of the way. The Thunder led 66-51 at halftime and werent challenged after that. As good as theyve been playing, Durant said the Thunder still have room for improvement. "We just want to play our best brand of basketball at the right time," he said. "But we cant do that unless we focus on today. Today we did a good job of playing together and playing hard on the defensive end. We cant think about April. Weve got to get past these days. "We can be a lot better. There are a lot of things we need to work on -- transition defence, rebounding, passing. On offence weve got to flow a little better. But our chemistry is growing. Thats the most important thing." On the Lakers first two possessions, Bryant was tied up by Oklahoma City rookie Andre Roberson, then had the ball stolen by Westbrook. Bryant didnt take a shot until making a steal that led to a breakaway with 3:50 left in the first quarter, but he eschewed dunking the ball, instead laying it off the backboard. Bryant went 2 of 2 from the field in the first half and was a bit more aggressive after halftime, but missed all four of his shots. It was his second single-digit scoring outing since returning from his injury on Sunday. Westbrooks double-double was his fifth of the season. Durant finished 10 of 13 from the field while Ibaka went 8 of 13. Wesley Johnson added 13 points for Los Angeles. NOTES: After missing three games with back spasms, Lakers C Chris Kaman suited up Friday and entered the game at the start of the fourth quarter. He finished with nine points. ... Thunder G Thabo Sefolosha missed his third straight game with a sprained right knee. The team said he remains day to day. ... Young received a technical foul from official David Guthrie early in the second quarter after complaining following a 3-pointer by Oklahoma Citys Jeremy Lamb. ... Oklahoma City recorded its 99th straight regular-season sellout at Chesapeake Energy Arena. ... Jackson has hit at least one 3-pointer in 10 straight games for Oklahoma City. ... Lakers C Robert Sacre grabbed a career-high eight rebounds. cheap jerseys from china .ca. Hi Kerry, In Game 2 of the Canadiens-Bruins series, could you explain how the interference to Tuukka Rask by Brandon Prust, which appeared to prevent him from getting back into position and be ready for Mike Weavers shot (which produced Montreals first goal) differed from the situation you described in the first series when Carey Price was interfered with and - as you answered then - was correctly waved off as a no goal? Thanks!Rhonda McClure Rhonda: The primary difference between the two plays, both of which resulted in significant contact with the goalkeepers inside their crease, is that Brandan Prust was pushed/cross-checked from behind onto Tuukka Rask by his defenceman (Andrej Meszaros) which negated interference on the goalkeeper as spelled out in rule 69. cheap nfl jerseys . - In their toughest test yet of this young NBA season, the Los Angeles Clippers measured themselves against the Miami Heat and liked how they stacked up. PHILADELPHIA -- Sergei Bobrovsky stuck it to his former team, then gave his stick a few extra shakes in celebration toward the jeering crowd. Back on familiar ice, Bobrovsky made himself quite at home. Bobrovsky stopped 37 shots for his fourth shutout of the season, leading the Columbus Blue Jackets to their first win in Philadelphia, 2-0 over the Flyers on Thursday night. "Its something special," Bobrovsky said. "Its tough to explain." James Wisniewski and Brandon Dubinsky each scored goals for the Blue Jackets, who were 0-5-1 in Philadelphia since the franchises inception in 2000. Led by Bobrovsky, a former Flyer, the Blue Jackets moved closer to clinching their second-ever playoff berth. They closed within two points of the Flyers for third place in the Metropolitan Division. "Were in a good position," Dubinsky said. "Its not like where we were last year when we had to continue to watch and hope and chase teams. Were right where we want to be." The Flyers have lost three straight games and were shut out for the second straight time. They havent scored a goal in 130 minutes, 25 seconds, dating back to a third-period goal on March 30 against Boston. Flyers coach Craig Berube said the offence simply didnt test Bobrovsky enough, especially in the third. "Weve got to do a better job of getting shots through, get rebounds," he said. Wisniewski snapped a scoreless tie with his seventh goal of the season late in the second period. He finished off a Columbus attack that saw at least three shots on Steve Mason before he was able to slide in the puck with 6 seconds left on the power play. Dubinsky appeared to kick in the puck early in the third to make it 2-0. The Blue Jackets are about as automatic as it gets in the NHL with a lead after two periods: They improved to 27-2-4 with a two-period lead. "Were going to keep climbing," Bobrovsky said. The interesting matchup was the one between the pipes: Mason vs. Bobrovsky. Maason had it all figured out in Columbus when he went 33-20-7 with 10 shutouts and won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year in 2008-09, the only season the Blue Jackets have made the playoffs. cheap jerseys. But Mason and Columbus could never recapture that fleeting success again. He fell to 20 wins and five shutouts the next season, and bottomed out in 2011-12 with a 16-26-3 mark. Mason lost his job to Bobrovsky, the former Flyer who blossomed into last seasons Vezina Trophy winner. Mason, who had 25 saves, was traded to the Flyers at the end of last season and became the No. 1 goalie after they bought out Ilya Bryzgalovs contract. Bobrovsky was expendable because Bryzgalov signed a nine-year deal and was supposed to anchor the net as Philadelphia chased its first Stanley Cup championship since 1975. Bryzgalovs quirky personality and sometimes brutal honesty with the media didnt always endear him to teammates and he lasted only two seasons. Mason and Bobrovsky are now leading playoff pushes for both organizations. Bobrovsky made 17 saves in the second period and the Blue Jackets defence kept the punchless Flyers out of the zone for most of the third. "We know it means a lot for him to be back here in Philly," Dubinsky said. "When you get traded from a team, it always feels good to go into the building and beat them. He was huge. He gave us an opportunity when we werent at our best in the first." The Flyers need to rediscover their offence over the final games if they want to make any kind of deep post-season run. "I dont think you can start pressing the panic button or anything like that, but we definitely need to get harder, especially in front of their end," forward Scott Hartnell said. NOTES: Flyers D Kimmo Timonen (upper body) returned to the lineup after a one-game absence. ... Bobrovsky has eight career shutouts. ... The Blue Jackets are 3-1 vs. the Flyers this season. ... The Blue Jackets and Flyers have played each other only 15 times. ' ' ' |
