Auburn Hills, MI (Sports Network) - Kobe Bryant scored 28 points and had five steals as the Los Angeles Lakers earned a 93-81 win over the Detroit Pistons.
Kobe Scores 28 In Lakers’ 93-81 Win Over Pistons
Andrew Bynum chipped in 16 points for the Lakers, who finished a five-game road trip by securing their first home-and-home sweep of the Detroit Pistons in eight seasons. The Lakers went 4-1 on their trek and have won 15 of their last 16 games overall.
“We wanted to get on the road and get our feet underneath us, understand how to play on the road,” said Lakers coach Phil Jackson. “I think we did okay. None of the teams we played against had above .500 winning percentages, so we knew we had a good chance to go through this.”
Pau Gasol recorded 13 points and 11 boards, while Ron Artest contributed 14 points, nine assists and six steals in the victory as LA moved to an NBA-best 22-4.
Rodney Stuckey had 16 points for the Pistons, who were coming off a loss in Oklahoma City on Friday. Jonas Jerebko added 15 points for Detroit, which played without Richard Hamilton (sore right hamstring).
“They were the team that attacked us as opposed to us attacking them,” said Pistons head coach John Kuester. “No matter whether you’re playing the Lakers or you’re playing some other team, the aggressors usually get the calls and are the team that normally wins.”
The Lakers made 13-of-17 free throws in the first quarter, while the Pistons had just one try from the charity stripe. That meant a huge advantage for the visitors as they built a 31-19 lead after the opening quarter. That included an 11-0 run.
LA continued to build on its lead and stretched the margin to 56-38 at the half. Detroit failed to gain ground in the third and Gasol’s layup in the final minute expanded the difference to 83-62 moving to the fourth.
The Pistons pulled within eight points at 89-81, but that was with 1:45 remaining following a Jerebko jumper. Bryant immediately countered with a pull-up jumper to stem the tide.
The Lakers hadn’t swept the season series with Detroit since 2001-02 and had lost nine straight - including postseason - at the Palace of Auburn Hills before a win on March 26 last season...Austin Daye scored 10 for Detroit, which shot 2-of-12 from three-point range...Bryant finished 11-of-23 from the field...Detroit committed 22 turnovers.
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