Lakers 131, Mavs 96

So much for the showdown between the top two teams in the Western Conference. The Lakers hammered the Dallas Mavericks tonight, leading by as many as 43 points en route to a 35-point victory. Jordan Farmar matched his career high by scoring 24 points. Andrew Bynum added 19 points, Kobe Bryant had 15 points, Lamar Odom had 15 points and 15 rebounds and Sasha Vujacic and Josh Powell had 11 each. Dirk Nowitzki led the Mavericks with 22 points and eight rebounds. Jason Kidd was scoreless on 0-for-6 shooting. The Lakers shot 63.4 percent and the Mavericks shot 37.8 points.

Halftime: Lakers 64, Mavs 39

Kobe Bryant scored 15 points in the first half tonight to tie Patrick Ewing for 15th place on the NBA’s all-time scoring list with 24,815 points. Bryant made 6 of 11 shots and also had two rebounds and five assists as the Lakers built a big lead. Jordan Farmar added 12 points in a reserve role. The Lakers played most of the half without Pau Gasol, who strained his left hamstring. Dirk Nowitzki scored 13 points for Dallas, which shot 4 for 25 in the first quarter (16 percent) and 12 for 43 for the half (27.9 percent).

Gasol strains hamstring (Updated)

Power forward/center Pau Gasol left tonight’s game against the Dallas Mavericks because of a strained left hamstring. It wasn’t immediately certain whether he would return to the game or not. He left for the locker room late in the first quarter. It also wasn’t immediately clear how he was hurt or whether this was something that had been troubling him for a while. He sat out of the season’s first 11 games because of a strained right hamstring.

UPDATE: Gasol will not return tonight and will be re-evaluated Monday.

Lakers 109, Kings 108

Kobe Bryant made his third buzzer-beater this season, a 3-pointer from the left wing that enabled the Lakers to complete a rally from a 20-point deficit tonight. Bryant finished with 39 points on 13-for-27 shooting. He was 5 of 7 from 3-point range. He also had five rebounds and five assists in 47 minutes, 15 seconds. Lamar Odom added 20 points, Pau Gasol had 17 points and 16 rebounds and Andrew Bynum had 16 points. Spencer Hawes led the Kings with a career-high 30 points. Bryant also has beaten Miami and Milwaukee at the buzzer this season. He scored 27 points in the second half tonight.

“Crazy,” Bynum said of Bryant’s game-winner. “That was unbelievable. They keep leaving him wide open. That’s what he does. That’s why he’s the best.”

Halftime: Kings 64, Lakers 49

Sacramento shot lights-out in the first half tonight, making 61.4 percent while holding the Lakers to 37 percent shooting. Omri Casspi, Beno Udrih and Spencer Hawes each scored 13 points for the Kings. Pau Gasol led the Lakers with 14 points, Kobe Bryant had 12 and Andrew Bynum scored 10 for the Lakers, who trailed by as many as 20 points.