HOUSTON – Kobe Bryant took the inbounds pass, dribbled away from Ron Artest and swished a shot from 33 feet to end the third quarter.
He struck a frozen pose after another signature moment, sending a clear message to the hostile crowd that he and the Los Angeles Lakers are in control of their Western Conference semifinal.
Bryant scored 33 points in the Lakers’ 108-94 victory in Game 3 on Friday night that gave them a 2-1 lead in the series. Game 4 is Sunday in Houston.
“I’m just doing what I do best,” Bryant said, “just challenging other teams to try to do something with me.”
Lamar Odom had 16 points and 13 rebounds and reserve point guard Jordan Farmar had 12 points and seven assists in place of the suspended Derek Fisher, who was ejected from Game 2 for a hard hit on Luis Scola when he set a pick.
Artest, who scored 25, was ejected for a flagrant foul on Pau Gasol in the final minute, the only carry-over of the rough play that turned testy in Game 2.
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NBA PLAYOFFS
Saturday – Denver at Dallas, 2 p.m., ESPN; Cleveland at Atlanta, 5 p.m., ABC
Sunday – L.A. Lakers at Houston, 12:30 p.m., ABC; Boston at Orlando, 5 p.m., TNT