Lakers 101, Thunder 94

Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol each scored 21 points and the Lakers won for the eighth time in nine games after defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder tonight at Staples Center. Russell Westbrook scored 32 points and Kevin Durant had 24 for the Thunder. The Lakers held the Thunder scoreless after Serge Ibaka’s dunk made it 98-94 with 2 minutes, 9 seconds remaining in the game. Westbrook missed two free throws with 22.2 seconds left that would have cut the Lakers’ lead to 99-96. Bryant also missed two free throws late.

“It’s a good win for us,” Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. “We’ve been playing better. We know that we’ve got a ways to improve and things to do, but our intensity was right. We had the energy necessary to win against a very young, active team.”