Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - Kobe Bryant notched 27 points to help the Los Angeles Lakers earn a 100-88 win over the New Jersey Nets at Staples Center.
Pau Gasol totaled 20 points and nine rebounds while Ron Artest and Lamar Odom both scored 14 points. Odom added 11 rebounds for the Lakers, who have won seven straight overall and seven straight against the Nets. Shannon Brown had 12 points in the victory.
"I felt pretty good out there," said Bryant. "It's been a while for me to work myself back into the rhythm. These are the toughest games for me to play."
Brook Lopez scored a game-high 35 points and added six rebounds while Sasha Vujacic added 17 points for the Nets, who have dropped their last four. Jordan Farmar had 12 points and Kris Humphries pulled down 15 boards to go with six points.
"They fought, they didn't give in to the crowd or the Laker tradition," said New Jersey head coach Avery Johnson. "Kobe had a good game and we made him work for it. It took us a while to get ourselves in sync."
The Nets had a pair of 6-0 runs in the first quarter that helped them take a 24-22 edge into the second. But the Lakers took the lead back on an Artest three-pointer that was part of a 15-4 run, which Artest capped with another three for a 43-34 lead.
The Lakers held a 45-40 edge at halftime, but Lopez made it a two-point game, 51-49, with a free throw with 8:09 to play in the third.
Gasol, though, countered with a jumper to spark a seven-point burst he closed with another bucket, giving the Lakers a 58-49 game with 5:30 to play.
A pair of Lopez free throws later in the third got New Jersey within four, but Brown answered with a jumper and the Lakers carried a 70-63 lead into the fourth.
A Vujacic three with 7:31 to play narrowed New Jersey's deficit to two, but Luke Walton quickly countered with a bucket to start a 9-0 run. Bryant's three-point play finished it for an 87-76 lead with 5:23 to play.
The Nets couldn't recover from that run, and didn't get closer than seven the rest of the way.
The Lakers will be the guest in a game against the Clippers on Sunday...The Nets continue their four-game road trip in Portland on Saturday...The Lakers have taken nine of 10 against the Nets...The Lakers reached the 100-point mark for the fifth straight game...The Lakers made 49.3 percent of their baskets while New Jersey sank 42.4 percent.