|
 Bryant scored the winning basket with 12.4 seconds remaining,
lifting the Los Angeles Lakers to an 88-87 victory at Staples
Center.
Bryant, who misfired on a 3-point shot Friday night that would have
forced overtime in a loss to the Memphis Grizzlies, missed a
go-ahead bucket against the Pacers with about a minute remaining
before converting a second time on the Lakers' final possession.
"I had a good look, missed it, but I knew I could get back to it
because of the way the defense was playing," said Bryant, who
finished with 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting in 32 minutes. He added
six assists, six rebounds and three steals.
Guard Nick Young scored a game-high 22 points for the Lakers, who
ended a three-game losing streak.
Bryant won't play Monday night, when the Lakers (11-23) visit the
Portland Trail Blazers. Coach Byron Scott decided it was best to
rest Bryant, who missed three consecutive games last month due to
fatigue, and avoid playing him in back-to-back games. However, Los
Angeles benefitted from Bryant's play down the stretch Sunday, as
the 36-year-old veteran scored nine points in the final 2 1/2
minutes to sink the Pacers.
 Not surprisingly, Scott drew up the Lakers' final play for Bryant,
who hit a jump hook in the lane over Pacers forward Solomon Hill.
"We drew up two plays," Scott said. "I told Kobe to make a decision
based on how they play you, and he was able to get to the basket.
One guy was really playing him, and we set the screen. (Hill) was
backing up, and he was in no-man's land. It was kind of easy to take
him one way or another."
Guard C.J. Miles scored 19 points and guard Donald Sloan had 16 to
lead the Pacers, who had a two-game winning streak snapped. Sloan
also had nine assists and seven rebounds.
A 3-pointer by Bryant gave Los Angeles an 84-82 lead with two
minutes left. However, Hill answered with a trey 22 seconds later to
give Indiana the lead back.
Two free throws by Bryant made it 86-85 Lakers with 1:26 left, but
Sloan put the Pacers back on top with a jumper at 1:01.
After Bryant's final hoop, Indiana (13-22) had one last shot.
However, the Lakers forced center Roy Hibbert to take a contested
shot near the top of the key that missed badly as time expired.
"I don't think the shot that I took was the shot we drew up," said
Hibbert, who finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds.
Indiana coach Frank Vogel said his club didn't land a knockout blow
when it had an opportunity in the second half.
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"I thought we had opportunities in the third quarter to separate
from them," said Vogel, whose club blew a 13-point lead in the
second half. "We failed to do so, let them hang around, and great
players made great plays."
Carlos Boozer and Hibbert had to be separated after the Lakers
forward pushed the Pacers center to the floor with 5:55 left and
Hibbert jumped up to retaliate. Boozer was handed a flagrant-1 foul,
while Hibbert was nailed with a technical.
The Lakers skated out to a 9-2 lead on seven points from Bryant, but
the Pacers finished the opening quarter with a flourish. They
converted six of eight 3-pointers, three of them by Miles, and
closed with a 14-0 run for a 28-15 cushion after one period. Miles
had 11 points in the first.
Indiana, though, made just two of 20 on 3-point attempts the rest of
the way, missing 16 in a row at one point.
The Lakers prevailed despite getting outrebounded 50-37, including a
16-5 edge for the Pacers on the offensive end. They also outscored
Los Angeles 26-2 on second-chance points.
Los Angeles lost forward Wesley Johnson in the second quarter to a
strained right hip flexor. He too won't make the trip to Portland,
and he will undergo an MRI exam.
NOTES: The Lakers held a moment of silence for ESPN anchor Stuart
Scott, who died Sunday morning of cancer. ... Pacers G C.J. Watson
missed his second consecutive game with a sore left foot. G George
Hill also missed his second game with a sore left groin. ... Los
Angeles improved to 34-8 at home against Indiana. ... The Pacers
resume their road trip Monday against the Jazz in Utah.
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