Los Angeles Lakers Team Report - November 11

(Basketball News) - The Los Angeles Lakers were stunned by the Memphis Grizzlies, 105-95, on Monday at the Pyramid.

Shaquille O’Neal paced the Lakers with 20 points and 12 rebounds. Kobe Bryant finished with 19 points and Devean George added 17 for Los Angeles, which has dropped two straight after opening the season with five consecutive victories.

Memphis opened the third quarter with a 15-4 burst, capped by James Posey’s three-point play, to grab a 76-58 advantage.

The Grizzlies’ lead reached as many as 19 points twice in the period, the last time at 85-66 on Earl Watson’s jumper with 31 seconds left in the stanza.

Luke Walton then drained a three-pointer at the buzzer for Los Angeles to make it a 16-point game after 36 minutes.

The Lakers continued to chip away in the fourth quarter, cutting the deficit to seven at 91-84 on a pair of Bryant free throws with 5 1/2 minutes remaining.

Memphis then received a dunk from Jake Tsakalidis and a basket from Pau Gasol to extend the margin to 11 with 4:45 left.

Los Angeles was able to get within eight, but Shane Battier answered with a rare four-point play to seal it. Battier drilled a three-pointer from the corner and was fouled by Bryant. He then sank the free throw to give the Grizzlies a commanding 101-89 lead with just 1:58 remaining.

The Lakers are off until Wednesday when they host the Toronto Raptors in the first of a three-game homestand.