Mon Jun 16 03:54:00 2008

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Celtics can't close out Lakers in L.A.

LOS ANGELES (AP) -Paul Pierce was winning his matchup with Kobe Bryant until the Lakers star stole the game away in the final minutes.Pierce scored 38 points on offense and helped slow down Bryant on defense in Game 5 of the NBA finals on Sunday nig

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LOS ANGELES (AP) -Paul Pierce was winning his matchup with Kobe Bryant until the Lakers star stole the game away in the final minutes.

Pierce scored 38 points on offense and helped slow down Bryant on defense in Game 5 of the NBA finals on Sunday night. But after bringing the Celtics back from a 19-point deficit, Pierce twice let Bryant slap the ball away in the final minutes as the Los Angeles Lakers won 103-98 to force the series back to Boston.

``Paul is one of my favorite players in the league,'' said Bryant, who scored 15 on Ray Allen in the first quarter before Pierce took over defending him. ``He's tough. ... He has the whole package. I enjoy watching him play, I enjoy playing against him, and he's fantastic.

``Tonight, he did what a great player does. He attacked and saw opportunities to keep his team in the ballgame, and that's what he did.''

Game 6 is Tuesday night, and the Celtics would have another chance to close out their 17th NBA title on Thursday night if they need it.

The Celtics overcame a 24-point deficit to win Game 4 in Los Angeles, and they fell behind quickly in Game 5, as well. The Lakers took a 41-22 lead with the first basket of the second quarter, and again the Celtics mounted a comeback.

``It's tough when you're always fighting back from big leads of 16, 17 points,'' Pierce said. ``That's not something we practice. But we're up one game with two games to go at home, so it still feels like we have the advantage in the series, and I do feel like we're the better team.''

With Kendrick Perkins scratched from the lineup and all of the other starters resting or in foul trouble, Pierce scored 13 of Boston's next 17 points. He also helped out on the other two baskets with an assist and a steal as the Celtics cut a 19-point deficit to four points with a 15-0 run.

``When I'm aggressive, everybody else is aggressive,'' Pierce said. ``So I just wanted to make plays, feel like I have an advantage night-in and night-out. That's all I do, try to get to the rim and take advantage of my opportunities.''

An L.A. native facing the team he followed as a kid, Pierce had 26 at the half and finished with eight assists and six rebounds while playing all but the final 2 seconds. He was 2-for-6 from 3-point range and 16-for-19 from the line.

``He was terrific,'' Celtics coach Doc Rivers said. ``I thought he was really aggressive to the basket; getting to the foul line 19 times tells you that. I thought he really went for it, if you want to put it that way.''

Pierce also helped out covering the NBA's MVP.

``He's the whole focus for us,'' Pierce said. ``He's a guy who can beat you all by himself, so the whole game plan is (based) on stopping him and making other guys beat us. It's just unfortunate that we let the other guys beat us.''

But with just over 3 minutes left and the Celtics trailing 94-91, Bryant slapped the ball away from Pierce to make it a two-possession game. It was 97-95 when Pierce grabbed a rebound and brought the ball across halfcourt.

Kevin Garnett came up to set a pick, but Bryant lunged from behind to poke the ball loose.

``Kobe is a great player. He made two big steals on myself there in the fourth quarter that I shouldn't have allowed,'' Pierce said. ``It definitely hurts; tough one to swallow, and we'll just try to get the next one at home.''

The ball bounced to Lamar Odom, who grabbed it and threw it upcourt to the streaking Bryant for a clinching dunk.

``He made really a last-ditch effort because Paul had him beat,'' Rivers said. ``It's not like he gambled; he had no choice. He just came from behind and got a piece of the ball. So give him the credit.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.