Bryant paces Lakers over Suns

Basketball Betting Lines

02/18/2012 - Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kobe Bryant had 36 points, nine rebounds and six assists, as the Lakers downed the Suns, 111-99, in the opener of a home-and-home at Staples Center.

Andrew Bynum added 17 points and 14 rebounds for the Lakers, who have won three straight and four of five. Matt Barnes also had 17 points while Derek Fisher chipped in 12 and Pau Gasol finished with 10 and 13 rebounds.

The Suns, meanwhile, have lost four in a row and five of their last six. They were led by Marcin Gortat's 21 points and 16 rebounds. Ex-Laker Shannon Brown had 15 points, Markieff Morris had 14 and Steve Nash scored 11 to go with 17 assists.

"Every time I take Grant (Hill) out of the game, Kobe explodes," Suns coach Alvin Gentry said. "Someone else has to step up. You can't turn the ball over 15 times in the first half. We had unforced turnovers. We didn't protect the ball tonight."

Bryant found himself on the bench to start the final quarter after helping the Lakers to a 87-73 advantage with 18 third-quarter points.

Phoenix, though, opened the fourth with a 10-6 run to pull the NBA's leading scorer from the pine. Gasol answered with an 11-footer, but the Suns continued to fight back. They scored the next seven points, capped by Brown's putback slam, to make it 95-90.

They would get no closer, however, as Fisher drained a short jumper before Bryant made a 12-foot turnaround and a lefty hook in the lane for a decisive 101-90 advantage with under three minutes to play.

"A good win for us. We made enough plays to win the game and scored more points that usual," Gasol said. "They made it close, but we didn't panic. It was a solid effort."

Earlier, the Suns rode Gortat's eight points and seven boards to a 25-21 lead after one. They were up 35-34 midway through the second when the Lakers' reserves scored 11 straight.

Barnes, Steve Blake and Troy Murphy all hit a three-pointer during the surge before Phoenix battled back to tie the game at 48. The Lakers, though, closed with a 9-0 run, getting five points from Fisher to take a 57-48 lead into the break.

Bryant, who scored a season-low 10 points in Tuesday's win over the Hawks, took over in the third. It was 69-63 when he scored 12 points during a 14-0 LA run, capping it with a trey for an 83-63 lead.

Game Notes

The Lakers' 111 points were a season-high...Bryant entered Friday averaging 28.7 points per game...Barnes' 17 points were a season-high...The Suns have lost seven of eight to the Lakers at Staples Center...The teams will meet Sunday night in Phoenix.

Aportsline Basketball Betting News

<< Truex Jr. picks pole position for Budweiser Shootout
Daytona Beach, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Martin Truex Jr. selected the pole position for the Budweiser Shootout during Friday night's random drawing at Daytona International Speedway. Truex Jr., driver of the No.56 Toyota for Michael W

<< Avalanche top Oilers
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mark Olver and Gabriel Landeskog each had a goal and an assist, as the Colorado Avalanche handled the Edmonton Oilers, 3-1. Erik Johnson also lit the lamp for the Avalanche, who improved to 1-1-1 on a

<< Jefferson, Jazz outlast Wizards
Salt Lake City, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Al Jefferson scored 34 points with 12 rebounds and the Utah Jazz snapped a two-game losing streak with a 114-100 win over the Washington Wizards on Friday night. The Jazz also stopped a two-game sli

<< Nowitzki, Mavs pull away to beat Sixers
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Dirk Nowitzki scored 28 points, including 24 in the second half as the Dallas Mavericks completed a comeback victory over the Philadelphia 76ers, 82-75, at Wells Fargo Center on Friday. Nowitzki's 24

<< Love leads Timberwolves over Rockets
Houston, TX (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kevin Love had 33 points and 17 rebounds and Nikola Pekovic scored a career-high 30, as the Timberwolves downed the Rockets, 111-98, on Friday. Ricky Rubio added 18 points and nine assists for the

Roddick upset in straight sets in San Jose >>
San Jose, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Second-seeded Andy Roddick lost to Russia's Denis Istomin in the quarterfinals, 6-2, 6-4 on Friday at the $531,000 SAP Open. Roddick. a three-time San Jose titlist (2004-05, 2008), was the

Miyazato tops strong leaderboard in Thailand >>
Chonburi, Thailand (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ai Miyazato fired a seven-under 65 Saturday to take a one-stroke lead after 54 holes of the Honda LPGA Thailand. Miyazato, the 2010 winner, finished three rounds at 14-under-par 202. She will go for her

Kruger owns slim lead at Avantha Masters >>
New Delhi, India (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jbe' Kruger carded a six-under 66 in the third round Saturday to grab a one-stroke lead after 54 holes of the Avantha Masters. Kruger finished three rounds at 11-under-par 205, but there are 18 players wi

Flyers, Penguins clash in Philadelphia >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The latest edition of the Battle of Pennsylvania is on tap today in Philadelphia, as the Flyers welcome the Pittsburgh Penguins for an afternoon battle at Wells Fargo Center. Today's contest marks the third of six schedule

Blackhawks hope to stay on track vs. Blue Jackets >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Blackhawks have put their longest losing streak in over five years behind them and will try to record consecutive wins when they visit the Columbus Blue Jackets today at Nationwide Arena. The Blackhawks were on

NFL Football Office Pools : NFL Football Contests

NFL Football Office Pool Printable Schedules

Welcome to our free football office pool page. Run your own NFL Football Office Pool. Create your own pool, invite your friends to join. Compete with your with co-workers, friends or family for bragging rights every week. Exchange some hard hits without risk of injury -- Trash Talk with your fellow co-workers.

Football Pickem Pools: Your basic office pool format, where you pick the winner of each game, either against the spread or straight up. Spice up your pool by using confidence ranks, key picks, and other options. Pick 5 pools available. You can print NFL Football Office Pools here. Custom ranks available. Custom point spreads. Use Pro and/or College games, even D1AA games can be included. Many many other options.

Football Survivor Pools: Also known as Knockout, Suicide, Eliminator, Survival and Loser pools. Pick one team each week. If they win you advance to the next round. If they lose, you're out. The catch: You can only pick a team once. Many options like Pick a Team Only [Once,Twice,Unlimited], [1,2,3,4,5] Strikes and You're Out, Double Picks, Bye Weeks, Alias Entries and more. Very easy to set up and manage.

Football Share Pools: Pick college and/or pro football game winners using Vegas odds in our own unique Share Pool format. Accumulate points by picking pointspread and over/under winners. Risk as many points as you want on any game. The person with the most points (shares) at the end wins. Perfect for the Playoffs and Bowl Seasons.

Fantasy Football Pools: Fantasy football pool managers love our easy to use interface and custom settings. Points and head to head leagues, custom points, offline drafts, live scoring, waiver wire, trades and more. Live customer service by email or phone. $50 flat fee.

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your NFL football betting needs.