PHOENIX (AP)—Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant were dominant forces on the same court where they were All-Star Game co-MVPs three weeks ago. Give this one to Shaq and the Suns.
O’Neal scored 33 points and Phoenix overcame Bryant’s 49-point performance to beat the Los Angeles Lakers 118-111 on Sunday.
Matt Barnes added 26 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists as the Suns, without Steve Nash for the third straight game because of a sprained right ankle, defeated the Lakers for the first time in four tries this season.
Pau Gasol added 30 for Los Angeles, loser of two in a row for just the third time this season.
“We’re going through a period right now where everybody’s just kind of tired a little bit,” Bryant said. “It happens. … Everybody kind of goes through it a little bit. And this two games, we’ve been playing lethargic. It’s that point in the season where we kind of hit it. The key for us is to snap out of it.”
After his 45-point game against Toronto on Friday night, O’Neal has consecutive 30-point games for the first time since March 5-7, 2004, when he and Bryant were teammates in Los Angeles.
“It’s what I do,” O’Neal said. “I’ve been doing it since 1992. If you don’t believe it, Google me.”
O’Neal, who turns 37 on Friday, is the fourth player over 35 in NBA history to score at least 33 points in consecutive games. The others are Michael Jordan, Karl Malone and Alex English.
“A lot of people thought I lost it,” O’Neal said. “It’s kind of funny to me, when I say ‘I’m injured,’ no one believes me. Last year I was injured and this year I’m feeling pretty good.”
Bryant was asked if O’Neal reminded him of the Shaq of old.
“No, not quite,” Bryant said. “But he’s playing extremely well, obviously. The thing is they’re looking for him, they’re going inside to him. Tonight, I mean, Pau is giving up 250 pounds (a bit of an exaggeration). There’s really not much he can do in that situation and Shaq took advantage of it.”
Bryant made 18 of a season-high 38 attempts in the 96th 40-point game of his career. He scored 17 points in a span of less than four minutes early in the second half.
Leandro Barbosa added 22 points and Grant Hill 17 for the Suns, who improved to 6-2 since Alvin Gentry replaced the fired Terry Porter and returned the team to Mike D’Antoni’s fast-paced style. It was the Gentry-led Suns’ first win, though, over a team with a winning record.
“Obviously a great win for us,” Gentry said, “against what I think is still the best team in the league.”
Entering Sunday night’s competition, Phoenix was 1 1/2 games behind Dallas for the eighth and final playoff berth in the West, but only three behind Houston for the No. 4 spot.
Coach Phil Jackson, whose team was coming off a 90-79 loss at Denver, said the Lakers’ loss came at the free throw line, where Phoenix was 26-for-42 and Los Angeles 19-of-20.
“It’s tough to win when you gave up that many free throws,” Jackson said. “We gave up 37 on Friday and 42 tonight. You know, that’s tough.”
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