Lakers at Bobcats (2/8/13)

WOW! Talk about a roller coaster of emotions!  This game was the epitome of just that, as the Lakers get the come back win 100-93 over the Bobcats.

In the first half they were flat. Dead on arrival.  The ball/player movement we've enjoyed for the past 8 games or so was gone.  It made the Lakers offense stagnant and predictable. Turnovers were prevalent, and the Lakers found themselves in a 12 deficit at the half.  Kobe had only taken 2 shots and had 0 points.

The start of the second half included more of the same.  With about 6 min to go in the 3rd the Lakers found themselves on the wrong side of a 20 point hole.  Then Earl Clark, Jodie Meeks, and Antawn Jamison went to work.  By some hustle and effort, they clawed the Lakers back into the game by scoring 9 straight points.  Their energy then carried through to the rest of the team.  They kept chipping away and took the lead with about 4 min to go in the 4th.

From there it remained a close game, but the Lakers had too many weapons for the Bobcats.  The end of the 4 quarter tonight shows the potential of how good this Lakers team can be when they play within their roles.  Kobe Klosed the game offensively, and Dwight closed it defensively.  Remember how Kobe had 0 points in the first half?  He ended up with 20 for the night with 14 of those coming the 4th.  He had a key block on Ramon Sessions down the stretch.  Dwight Howard locked up the Bobcats best perimeter shooter (Mullens) in the final minutes.  He got beat on a head fake, but gave a second effort and was able to distract him enough to miss.  Dwight also had great contests and blocks at the rim when the Laker guards got beat off the dribble.

Notables:

The Good:
-  Role players with critical contributions tonight.  Jodie had 14 pts.  Clark had 17 pts and 10 reb. Antawn had 9 pts.
- Nash was aggressive offensively.  Scored 17 pts.
- Dwight woke up.  You cant tell he's no where near 100%.  But he didn't quit.
- Kobe picked the Bobcats apart in the 4th.
- Critical win

The Bad:
- Falling behind by 20 to the Bobcats is never good.  Even if they are our kryptonite.
- Utter garbage first half

I hope this game can be a microcosm for the entire Lakers season.  They'll need to put forth even more effort as they will be without the Spaniard for the next 6-8weeks.  And they've got the defending champion Heat up next.  Talk about another difficult task.  The Lakers will have to figure out how to beat the Heat's pressure defense. 

The best way to beat pressure?....Attack it.