Lakers 92, Spurs 83

SAN ANTONIO -- How about Ron Artest blowing kisses to Lakers fans in the crowd tonight at the AT&T Center? Artest scored 16 points, grabbed eight rebounds and added three assists, five steals and one blocked shots in 36 minutes, 36 seconds. If you didn't know it before tonight, this was why the Lakers signed him last summer and allowed Trevor Ariza to move to the Houston Rockets as a free agent. There were lots of other reasons why the Lakers extended their winning streak, but Artest's play was one of the big ones. Pau Gasol's defensive play against San Antonio's Tim Duncan was another. Gasol and Duncan essentially neutralized each other, which was fine with the Lakers. Gasol had 10 points and 12 rebounds and Duncan had six points on 2-for-11 shooting plus 12 rebounds.