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Lakers trek home for must-win Game Three

Jun 10, 2008 - 4:47 PM Boston at LA Lakers, 9:00 EDT

LOS ANGELES (Ticker) -- The Los Angeles Lakers hope to carry some momentum cross country when they take on the Boston Celtics in Game Three of the NBA Finals at the Staples Center Tuesday night.

The Lakers nearly erased a 24-point, fourth-quarter deficit in Sunday's 108-102 Game Two loss to the Celtics, who lead the best-of-seven series, 2-0. Los Angeles used a 31-9 run to pull within 104-102 with 38 seconds left on two free throws by Kobe Bryant, but failed to score the rest of the way.

It was a tough start to the Finals for the Lakers, who had to deal with a raucous crowd in the first two contests at TD Banknorth Garden and seemed a bit overmatched until Sunday's late-game rally.

But the NBA's championship series has used a 2-3-2 format since 1985 - also a Finals matchup between these teams - allowing Los Angeles a chance to get back in the series on its home court, where it is 8-0 this postseason and has won 14 in row since March 14.

But it will have to play like it did down the stretch Sunday against Boston, which now is just two wins away from its league-best 17th title.

"We just learned about momentum," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. "We started turning the corner a little bit in the fourth quarter, but they'd come back, hit a three, something would happen, and I just kept saying we'll find a moment in this game to come back and play it.

"We just want this game to last long enough to carry it out. But it didn't. So, we'll learn some lessons from that and we'll learn some lessons from what we have to do offensively to control the game and control the pace of the game."

Even if Los Angeles continues its strong play from Sunday's final period, it will face long odds to win this series.

Only three teams in NBA history have erased a 2-0 deficit in the Finals and hoisted the championship trophy: Boston against Los Angeles in 1969, the Portland Trail Blazers against the Philadelphia 76ers in 1977 and the Miami Heat against the Dallas Mavericks in 2006.

If the Lakers are to become the fourth, they will have to ratchet up their aggressiveness. Los Angeles attempted just 10 free throws in Game Two, while Boston shot 27-of-38 from the free-throw line. Celtics forward Leon Powe was 9-of-13 from the line en route to 21 points in 14 minutes,

As such, Lakers superstar and reigning league Most Valuable Player Kobe Bryant, who has shot 20-of-49 in the first two games, admitted that he had to get after his teammates to compete heading into Game Three.

"Get our, beep (butt) in gear," he said. "Play beep harder, a bunch of other beeps. It's beep, beep, beep, beep, beep. Eddie Murphy Raw times 10."