My, oh, my . . . the Lakers and Rockets too the just-concluded second game of the Western Conference semifinal series very seriously, indeed.
They surely tested the officiating, especially when Derek Fisher nailed Luis Scola blatantly with a shoulder and elbow (leading to his ejection late in the third quarter and, very possibly, a suspension for Game 3) and Ron Artest got into Kobe Bryant's face (leading to an ejection when, in reality, only a technical foul was warranted) in the fourth quarter.
Bryant (40 points) was phenomenal, getting into a jump-shooting rhythm early and, except for a stretch of the second quarter, never getting out of it.
But, please, Kobe: You're one of the two best players in the world. You didn't have to follow every shot you hit over (or around) Shane Battier by shaking your head and sneering while mouthing ``He can't guard me". That's high school stuff, and one of the officials finally called him on it by T'ing him up late in the game.
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