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Gasol leads Lakers over Hawks

Feb 15, 2012 - 6:45 AM Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - Pau Gasol had 20 points, doubling up Kobe Bryant, and the Los Angeles Lakers returned home with an 86-78 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday night.

Bryant had 10 points on 5-of-18 shooting without visiting the foul line and Gasol added 13 rebounds for the Lakers, who were coming off a 3-3 road trip while Staples Center was readied for Sunday night's Grammys.

The Lakers have beaten the Hawks six straight times at home and won 19 of the last 22 meetings between the teams in LA.

"Tonight, we had to find a way," said Gasol. "We got some energy going on in the second half and hit some big shots. Any time you hold a team down to 78 points is huge."

Jeff Teague scored 18 points to lead Atlanta while Josh Smith and Joe Johnson had 15 apiece. The Hawks started a five-game road trip with their fifth loss in seven games.

The Lakers trailed by five points early in the third quarter, but turned the game around with a 15-1 run sparked by four straight points by Bryant and a dunk by Metta World Peace.

Bryant scored eight of his 10 points during the burst and Andrew Goudelock ended it with a three, giving the Lakers a 59-50 lead.

Their advantage was 59-51 going into the fourth and reached 17 points on a Gasol three that made it 81-64 with around 3 1/3 minutes remaining.

"We're a very good defensive team," said Bryant. "We did well in transition. We were able to get some steals and turn them into points."

Andrew Bynum had 15 points and 15 rebounds for the Lakers while World Peace and Goudelock scored 10 apiece. LA shot 44 percent from the field and held Atlanta to 34.4 percent.

"We just didn't finish tonight," said Hawks coach Larry Drew.

The Lakers had 17 turnovers -- Atlanta scored 21 points off them -- including 10 in the second half. LA led 27-24 after the first quarter and 42-41 at halftime.

Game Notes

Up next for the Lakers is a home-and-home series with the Phoenix Suns this weekend. They will play in LA on Friday and in Phoenix on Sunday...Atlanta's five-game road trip also includes trips to Phoenix, Portland, Chicago and New York...Bryant's ex-wife, Vanessa, was seen waiting for him outside the locker room after the game.