Thunder Starts Cold, Loses Big to Lakers

Originally Published: Apr 27, 2010 11:4 PM CDT

Corey DeMoss
Oklahoma Sports Staff Writer

LOS ANGELES -- After the Oklahoma City Thunder dominated the Los Angeles Lakers in Oklahoma City, things completely reversed in Game 5 and the Lakers coasted to an easy 111-87 victory Tuesday.

The Lakers jumped out to a huge early lead and never let the Thunder back within striking distance, at one point building a lead of 32 points in the second half. Kobe Bryant and the other Laker starters did not even play in the fourth quarter after Los Angeles carried a 28-point lead into the frame.

Los Angeles made a concerted effort to get the ball inside to their big men, and it paid off. Pau Gasol finished with a game-high 25 points and Andrew Bynum added 21. Gasol and Bynum combined to shoot 18-of-26 from the floor thanks to several close-range baskets and dunks.

Both big men started strong as the Thunder struggled early for the third straight game in Los Angeles. OKC missed its first 13 shots of the game, allowing the Lakers to go on a 14-1 run to start the night. Oklahoma City finally made its first field goal of the game after more than six minutes had passed.

Meanwhile, the Lakers played with energy and their focus on scoring in the paint led to easy points. They shot 70 percent from the field in the first quarter, while the Thunder made just 26 percent and trailed 31-16 after one.

OKC’s offense did not look any better in the second quarter. The Thunder missed its first six shots of the frame and made just five of 19 shots to finish the half shooting 26 percent from the field. The Lakers continued to push the tempo and hit their shots and made 65 percent of their first-half shots. The Thunder attempted five more shots than LA, but made 13 fewer.

As the game rolled on, the Lakers continued to distance themselves. The Thunder forced bad shots and were sloppy with the ball, finishing with 15 turnovers that LA turned into 23 points.

Oklahoma City also failed to take advantage of its superior speed, registering just seven fast-break points. The Lakers scored 12, marking the first time in the series that Los Angeles won the category. By comparison, the Thunder won the category 24-2 in Game 4.

The Lakers finished Tuesday shooting 54 percent from the floor, while the Thunder shot 39 percent. Kevin Durant led OKC with just 17 points, and the only Thunder players to make more than 50 percent of their shots were Etan Thomas and Serge Ibaka.

The two teams will now return to Oklahoma City to play Game 6 on Friday, with the Thunder facing elimination.