WOW! LAKERS LEAVE SAN ANTONIO WONDERING, IT'S OVER ALREADY???

Don't hate non-Lakers fans, but it's on to the NBA Finals as our boys defeated the defending champion San Antonio Spurs 100-92 Thursday, advancing forward for the first time in four years.

"The first half was tough for us because they caught us off guard," said Kobe Bryant after wrapping up the best-of-seven series in five. "We just wanted to cut the deficit to a manageable level by half time and we did that and then turned on the gas in the second half."

The Lakers will meet the winner of the other semi-final between the Boston Celtics and the Detroit Pistons. Boston leads the best-of-seven series 3-2 with game six in Detroit on Friday. The Lakers and Celtics have not met in the finals since 1987.

Although Bryant scored 39 points, the Lakers actually trailed by 17 points in the first half. "Never a dull moment with these boys," said Lakers coach Phil Jackson.
Trailing 44-28 with 3:57 remaining in the second, the Lakers finished the half on a 14-4 run en route to a 48-42 deficit entering the third quarter, setting up Bryant's performance in the final two periods.

Los Angeles received the Western Conference championship trophy after the game from Laker legend Jerry West.

"This is dream come true," Bryant said. "It is such a blessing to be able to share this with a group of guys who are like brothers."

This from the guy who had demanded to be traded in the off-season. "It is really a very victorious point in time. For Kobe to come back after a bewildering two weeks in pre-season when things were so tenuous," added Jackson. (AFP)

Spurs Do What They Do Best... Win The Tough Ones, Sending The Hornets Packing

Kobe And Da' Lakers Better Look Out,These Three Are Some Bad, B-Ball Play'n Boys!

'One thing I want them to remember when they start working out next season is how they feel right now... You don't go from not making the playoffs last year) to winning a championship. It just doesn't work that way...

We're headed in the right direction.'' --- NBA Champion and current Hornets Coach Byron Scottafter loosing last night to a classic, hard nose, get the job done, San Antonio Spurs.

As Manu Ginobili dribbled out the final few seconds of the second-round series clincher, Tony Parker walked over and gave him a congratulatory pat on the head.

There would be no exuberant celebration for the San Antonio Spurs when the final horn sounded, just a few hugs for a job well done. This playoff-savvy group was exhausted after a seven-game triumph over the younger, upstart New Orleans Hornets , but its title defense endures - for now.

Ginobili scored 26 points, hitting four free throws in the final minute, to send the Spurs to the Western Conference finals with a 91-82 victory Monday night.

Parker added 17 points, including a crucial jumper in the final minute, as the Spurs held off a late rally to become the first team in this series to win on the road.

Sports Illustrated has more

Champion San Antonio Spurs Just Won't Go Away, Force Game 7

Third Quarter Is Pivotal In All 6 Previous Games

You could only assume that what happened in the third quarter last night, as usual with these two teams, would decide whether Tim Duncan could pack for one more trip to the French Quarter or pack for a long vacation on Maui.

As San Antonio's Tony Parker helpfully observed: "The whole series, man. Third quarter looks like it's pivotal."

That third quarter was ugly," Hornets guard Chris Paul conceded.

"Ugly."

Fatal might be a better word after the pattern continued late Thursday. It was an unreservedly hideous third quarter, this time endured by the New Orleans Hornets, which helped San Antonio pull away for a 99-80 rout that, at the very least, takes Team Duncan's bid to win back-to-back titles for the first time through to Monday night.

In the intervening three days until the decider, expect to hear loads about how the playoff rookies from New Orleans have outscored the reigning champs by a tidy count of 93-46 at home in the third quarters of their three victories ... and how the Hornets completely buckled in the third quarter of a Game 6 that could have eliminated the Spurs.

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