They picked a known poison, the Black Mamba. Kobe almost also claimed the prestigious game stat highs – 49 points, 10 assists and 4 rebounds. OK, maybe not almost.

Pau became a mortal once more as the god, Kobe, dominated. Lamar was a non-factor plagued with foul trouble but that’s OK. Luke made up for it by going strong the 2nd straight playoff game. I guess Lamar needed a break too. After all, he’s been the best 3rd option in the world ever since Pau arrived in L.A.

The best quote of the night came from the big dog himself, “Better learn not to talk to me,” Bryant said of Smith’s jabbering. “You shake the tree, a leopard’s gonna fall out.” I don’t understand mortal NBA players like J.R. Smith and Deshawn Stevenson. Why do they have to talk trash to Kobe and Lebron (respectively)? I guess they’re dumb.

K-Mart fouled out trying to guard Kobe and Pau. I feel for this guy. It seems like he is the only Nugget playing defense. Camby blocks shots, sure, but he’s tall, so he’s supposed to catch up with the ball at mid-air.

As expected, big George inserted Kleiza in the starting line up and sagged their defense. Kobe adjusted… and torched them from the outside.

And so the Laker team go to Denver where the “rapist” chants await. The Nuggets could use some help from their fans and the high altitude. The key for game 3, for the Lakers, is to take out the crowd early. They should trust the triangle one more time and not hoist 3′s freely against the Denver zone.

All the Lakers need to do is take one game… but they will try to take two.