A Nice 2nd Quarter Jog

Ok, I just thought it would be cool to do a running diary, but I didn't think it would be cool to do so until after the first quarter, which is why this is a jog, not a running diary. So far, Kobe Bryant has been unstoppable with 17 first quarter points. Also, Andrew Bynum has stayed out of foul trouble.

9:40- Jeff Van Gundy claims that Kobe Bryant's first quarter is the best he has seen in the Finals in a long time. Also, when ABC zoomed in on Kobe onthe bench, I caught a glimpse of Adam Morrison with a buzz cut. I think ABC should do a split screen of Morrison and Redick, as a special feature.
9:43- I read somewhere that Mickeal Pietrus was the French Michael Jordan, I don't know if that was a joke or something, but France can't be too great if he's the French Jordan, nothing against him, he's a great defender, a nice shooter, but the French Jordan? Anyway, he is spending time in the post against Sasha Vulachic which is why I thought of that, enjoy.
9:50-ABC has a new show called Cougar Town?!?! How insane, who comes up with these names? Cougar Town, I mean I get the theme of the show, but Cougar Town?
9:51-The French Jordan hits a nice pull up 17 footer off a screen and then allows for the real Jordan; I mean Kobe to drill a three in his eye. If Pietrus is the best two guard France has ever had, and Kobe is the best the America has ever had, does that mean America is that much better than France?
9:53-Turkoglu with a nice drive, ABC then decides to zoom in on him causing my TV to lose reception for a moment. Yes, he's that unattractive.
9:54- TV timeout, normally I would get up, but I'm waiting for the MVPuppet commercial, so I ain't going nowhere
9:59- Hedo Turkoglu with another nice drive. For the sake of my eyes and the TV someone's going to have to shut him down (D. Stern, you there?). Nevertheless, Turkoglu has really improved his game, he went from being a spot up shooter in Sacramento, to being a playmaking point-forward in Orlando. His handle could be a bit better, but as a 6-10 man he's effective.
10:10- Dwight Howard with a huge block on a Kobe drive, the Magic are playing chest to chest with Kobe on defense. Forcing him to drive and then allowing the help to come. A smart strategy that the Celtics used, but it's not too effective right now. The Magic are shooting 75% from the field which is ammazing. Even with that stat they're only up 5 at the end of the first half. They're playing as well as they possibly can, but LA is still hanging with Orlando. This has to be alarming for Orlando.
10:19- Magic Johnson makes a good point, the Magic are playing "fast", a great tempo for them and it's allowing them to score some points. Rafer Alston is making this whole thing go for Orlando though, he's got 13 points and is pushing the ball and getting everyone involved.
10:37-Flash to Brian Shaw in his baby blue suit, with a baby blue button up. A pretty move my Pau Gasol, giving him 12 points and 0 rebounds, so much for him being soft.
10:41-A nice baseline drive and dunk by Courntey Lee.
10:46- Kobe is pressing a bit, looking to much for his own shot and forgetting about his teammates. Phil Jackson said something very interesting about Kobe in his last book, when he stated Kobe sees tough defenders as people who are challenging his manhood, and turns it into a mano a mano battle, sometimes this works for the Lakers, other times it hurts them, as it is now.
10:50- Another bad shot by Kobe, followed by a Rafer Alston basket. Kobe needs to be taken out of the game, he's shooting them out of the ball game and the Lakers are trying too hard to get him the ball.
10:53- Lamar Odom comes weakside and blocks a Howard shot, but a foul is called. A horrible call, Odom reacts poorly, showing the most emotion I've ever seen out of him. Every Laker seems to want it as bad as Kobe.
10:54- Kobe takes another bad shot, but is fouled, he hits one of two free throws. Kobe HAS to start hitting his freebies
10:57- MVPuppet commercial!! Followed by The Hangover's trailer, possibly the best 1-2 commercial combo ever.
11:04-Orlando has missed three straight shots for the first time all night, are they starting to cool off? The Lakers aren't playing poor defense, Orlando is shooting the lights out, but they have to cool off at some point. As long as they don't go ice cold, they should be able to pull the game out.
11:10- After watching some replays, Courtney Lee is really irritating Kobe. Although, Bryant normally feasts on physical defenders, Lee is irritating him by touching and pushing on him even when he doesn't have the ball.
11:13- With Bryant out of the game, Odom is really starting to come alive. When Bryant dominates the ball, Odom usually struggles, in fact all of the Lakers struggle except for Gasol. I do not agree with those who say the Lakers are better when Kobe shoots less, but I do feel that the Lakers are at their best when Kobe distributes the ball and is more selective with his shots.
11:21- A big shot by Jordan Farmar, a bad shot but it went in, so it's a good one. Kobe checks back in and passes the ball which is a relief. Another missed freethrow by LA, but Farmar grabs the rebound and turns it over trying to force it into Kobe. The French Jordan finishes the fastbreak with possibly the ugliest lay up I've ever seen.
11:24- The trailer to Bruno looks pretty funny, but it could be a huge disappointment, using all the rejected Borat jokes, or more of the same. I'm not going to see it.
11:28- A pretty move on Howard by Gasol, his low post moves are so underrated. He may not be the strongest guy in the league, but he's nifty and uses his weight and lack of strength as an advantage.
11:30- Kobe with a nice feed to Fisher, the Lakers won't go away and are down two. Orlando is playing as well as they possibly can and they may not pull out a win at home here. Kobe is acting as the primary ball handler for LA right now and is doing a great job distributing, unsurprisngly, the Lakers are on a run.
11:33- Odom with a huge steal followed by a Kobe pull up jumper. Kobe's about to take this game over, LA down 2. Orlando seems a bit tentative here and LA is really stepping it up on defense. The wild card here is Kobe Bryant and which role he chooses to play. He needs to pick his spots here, that's not to say he shouldn't attack, but this isn't a time where Bryant should turn the game into his own personal vandetta.
11:36-MVPuppets!!!!
11:38- Kobe has been extremely active during the timeouts. Gasol hits two free throws tie game. The French Jordan with a nice tip slam, giving Orlando a two point lead again.
11:41- Gasol with another pretty finsh off of a Gasol pass. Lakers down one.
11:42- Big shot by Rashard Lewis gives Orlando a three point lead. Oddly, LA trapped Alston as the shot clock was winding down. With all of Orlando's weapons, it doesn't make any sense to trap Alston. Consequently, Alston finds an open Lewis who cans the open jumper.
11:45- Bryant misses another free throw! His fifth miss at the line, Orlando up two with a minute left.
11:48- Kobe with a HUGE turnover while trying to split a double team opposed to simply using the Gasol screen. Kobe is trying way to hard and might have cost the Lakers a win. Pietrus knocks down both free throws and Orlando is up four.
11:52- Kobe misses a huge three but LA gets the offensive rebound. LA down four with 17 seconds left, LA needs a score.
11:56- LA can't buy a three and they miss about three 3 point shots. Bryant finally puts in a lay up on an offensive rebound. The Magic pull out the win.
Orlando played as well as they possibly could, that coupled with an awful Kobe Bryant and the home crowd, the Magic barely pulled out a four point victory. Orlando may be back in the series in theory, but I doubt they win Game 4. I don't see Orlando playing this well again nor do I think Kobe will have another bad game. The Magic seemed estatic with this win, but after Games 1 and 2, the Lakers felt they were just taking care of business. This difference in attitude shows the different levels of expectations. Orlando seems happy to be here, while LA wants to win. No, the Lakers aren't going to sweep Orlando, but there is no reason for Laker fans to panic. Orlando did what they needed to do, they won a home game, but a win in Game 4 could virtually end the series.