Inside locker room

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Here's some of the best postgame comments after the Lakers' 111-94 loss tonight to the Portland Trail Blazers, their seventh consecutive defeat at the Rose Garden:

Trevor Ariza on his flagrant-2 foul that knocked Portland's Rudy Fernandez to the floor and sent him to the hospital with a soft tissue injury to his chest: "I was trying to go for the ball, trying to make a play on the ball. Unfortunately somebody got hurt."

Ariza on the Trail Blazers' reaction to his foul and the scuffle that followed: "That's one of their teammates. If it were one of my teammates, I'd probably do the same thing. I know there are no hard feelings. they were just protecting a teammate."

Lamar Odom on whether he left the bench area to act as peacemaker: "I stayed on the bench. I stood up, but I stood right there. I didn't go nowhere."

Phil Jackson on Ariza's foul and the ensuing altercation: "That was something that was unfortunate. ... Trevor went for the ball. He went for the ball (but) that's obviously going to be called a flagrant foul. But he went for the ball."