The Black Mamba Strikes Back

Charlie Klein

I guess we should just expect performances like this every night from either LeBron James or Kobe Bryant. The Black Mamba's 41 points carried the Los Angeles Lakers to a 2-1 series advantage over the Denver Nuggets last night in Denver.

Bryant hit a three point shot to put the Lakers up 96-95, a lead that they would hold until time expired. This game was almost an exact carbon copy of Game 1 in Los Angeles. The Nuggets led for the balance of the game outplaying and outshooting the Lake Show. Yet it was the combination of a mammoth scoring night from Bryant and one titanic defensive play from Trevor Ariza that again proved the recipe for succes for Los Angeles.

When the same thing happens to oneself twice, one has to wonder why he ever let it happen the second time. If that person, or in this case the Denver Nuggets, can only look to the poor trigger play of Anthony Carter in Game 1 or Kenyon Martin in Game 3 as the reason why the Lakers find themselves sitting in the catbird's seat in the Western Conference Finals. Really, someone more responsible has to be given the keys George Karl's Aston Martin than those two.

Game 4 in Denver should hold the key to this series. If the Lakers take a 3-1 series lead, do not expect the Zen Master and Co. allow the Nuggets back into things. The Nuggets have to do a better job of sweating the small stuff and get simple things like inbounds passes to the court if they want to prove they are better than the Lakers.

"How do you stop the unstoppable? You can't."

Melo and Chauncey Slay the Black Mamba in Game 2

Charlie Klein

Maybe Kobe liked watching his new commercial a little too much. There was no unstoppable three from the Black Mamba as the Nuggets take Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals 106-103 last night in Los Angeles.

Carmelo Anthony, and not Kobe Bryant, was the superstar of Game 2, leading all scorers with 34 points and nine rebounds. Chauncey Billups added 27 points of his own including some clutch free throws down the stretch.

A Game 2 Denver win at the outset of the game did not seem on the cards as the Lakers jumped out to a 14 point lead early in the second quarter. Kobe seemed to have affirmed his lifelong goal of reminding people that he is the greatest player in the NBA as he was making it rain on defensively poor Nuggets. George Karl's masterstroke was inserting Linas Kleiza into the proceedings as he helped the Nuggets storm back to within one at the close of the second quarter.

When the teams returned to the floor of the Staples Center for the third quarter, the Lakers appeared determined to put the game beyond Melo and Chauncey's reach. Trevor Ariza came out of the gate blazing hot and finished with 20 points on the night. Yet the Nuggets refused to be outdone. Kenyon Martin and Carmello Anthony continued to keep the Nuggets in it with clutch buckets in the fourth quarter. With the score tied at 101, K-Mart's tip in off of a missed Nene lay-up put the boys in baby blue up for good.

The game was not without controversy. It appeared that J.R. Smith of the Nuggets entered the tip circle before he should have, which if seen by the officials would have resulted in Lakers ball. Instead, Billups dribbled down the court, almost losing possession, and then was fouled by Fisher. The Lakers had one final chance to tie the game at the end of regulation as Derek Fisher put up a last-ditch three point shot attempt that was partially blocked by Nene.

Anthony commented after the game to the Associated Press, "To get one on the road is always tough. We came in and got it. We’re mentally tough and we showed that in this game coming off the loss that we gave away in Game 1.” The Nuggets win versus the Lakers ends an 11 game playoff losing streak to the Lakers. Nike may have to wait a little longer for its dream final.