New York battles Kobe, Lakers

This is the second and final contest of the season between the squads. On January 30th, Eddy Curry poured in a game-high 27 points and pulled down nine rebounds as New York downed the Kobe Bryant-less Lakers, 99-94, at Madison Square Garden. Bryant did not play because he was serving a one-game suspension from an incident during a loss to the San Antonio Spurs.

New York has lost three straight and seven of its last nine at the Lakers.

The Knicks opened their current swing with a tough loss. On Saturday, Derek Fisher’s lay-in with 3.6 seconds left in overtime lifted the Utah Jazz over New York, 104-102, at EnergySolutions Arena.

Jamal Crawford had 29 points and 10 rebounds to lead New York, which had its two-game winning streak halted. Eddy Curry had 27 points and eight rebounds, while David Lee collected 15 points and 11 boards in the loss to the Jazz for the Knicks.

New York is 9-16 as the visitor this season. The Knicks will visit the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday at ORACLE Arena in their final game before the All-Star break.

Los Angeles has dropped three in a row and returns home after going 3-5 on a season-long eight-game road trip. On Sunday, LeBron James scored 18 points, as the Cleveland Cavaliers earned an impressive 99-90 victory over the Lakers at Quicken Loans Arena.

Bryant finished with 36 points, seven rebounds, and six assists in the loss to Cleveland for the Lakers. Vladimir Radmanovic scored 12 points and grabbed 10 boards, while Lamar Odom netted 11 and pulled down 11 boards in defeat.

The Lakers begin a four-game homestand and are an impressive 19-6 as the host this season. They will also battle Cleveland, Portland and Boston on the current stand.