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Finals Notebook Fisher leads Lakers' long-range assault in Finals
Updated: Sunday June 17, 2001 10:27 AM
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- In a shower of 3-pointers for the Los Angeles Lakers, Derek Fisher was a hurricane. Fisher drained six of eight shots from long range, scoring all 18 of his points from beyond the arc Friday night in the Lakers' 108-96 NBA championship clincher. He wasn't the only one on target from outside the arc. The Lakers made 12 of 17 attempts, three by Rick Fox, two by Kobe Bryant and one by Robert Horry, who stretched his streak of 3s to seven straight before missing. Fisher provided the exclamation points -- a 3 for L.A.'s first basket of the game and another to seal the deal late in the fourth quarter. Fox had consecutive 3-pointers in the first quarter and his third appeared to be intended as an alley-oop for Shaquille O'Neal but dropped into the net instead for L.A.'s final basket of the game. Fisher was limited to 20 regular season games because of injuries and was just 25-for-63 from 3-point range before the playoffs. In the sweep of San Antonio in the Western Conference finals, he was 15-of-20 on 3s. Fond farewellPhiladelphia's Matt Geiger, reviled by Sixers fans throughout the playoffs for his slow recovery from a leg injury, received a standing ovation when he left the game after fouling out in the fourth quarter. Geiger and Dikembe Mutombo both fouled out of the game trying to guard Shaquille O'Neal. Geiger and O'Neal drew matching technical fouls when they got into a shouting match with 4:37 left in the third quarter Another First Union selloutGame 5 of the NBA Finals completed a week of five sellouts at the First Union Center, home of the Philadelphia 76ers. All three 76ers playoff games attracted just under 21,000 fans. Two U2 concerts added more than 38,000 fans to the total arena attendance of 101,386 for five events. Fans for the five dates consumed 1,506 gallons of bottled water, 5,884 gallons of soda and 869 pounds of hot dogs. Repeat repeatersThe championship marked the second time the Los Angeles Lakers have won consecutive NBA titles. The team also won consecutive titles in 1987 and 1988. Shaquille O'Neal also was a repeat MVP, joining Chicago's Michael Jordan (1991-1993, 1996-1998) and Houston's Hakeem Olajuwon (1994-1995) as the only players to win consecutive playoff MVP awards. IncentiveWith 15 wins in the playoffs, a record eight on the road, and just one loss, the Los Angeles Lakers established a record playoff winning percentage of .938 by winning Game 5. Just as important was avoiding the kind of disappointment the team experienced a year ago when Los Angeles led Indiana 3-1 in the best-of-seven series but was forced to a Game 6. "We're better at closing things out this year," Shaquille O'Neal said. Road warriorsThe chance to clinch a championship on the road made Friday night's game special to the Lakers. "Road victories in the playoffs are doubly sweet because they're such a difficult task," coach Phil Jackson said. "You have to be mentally strong and play under duress." The Lakers' eighth straight playoff road win tied the record set by the Houston Rockets in 1995. Horace Grant, who won a fourth championship ring, said there is greater incentive in these situations. "You're going to have all these people cheering against you," he said. "The attitude is us against the world, so to speak. So to win on the road, which I've done before, is a special feeling." Robert Horry, who also has three rings, has won each on his home floor. "I've never done it on the road," he said. "This is one of the things I want to do. The thing is, you hate that you can't do it in front of your fans, but just to get a championship is a great thing." Parade setLos Angeles will honor its two-time NBA champion Lakers with a parade on Monday, using the same route as when they won the title last year. The parade, which drew an estimated 500,000 a year ago, will begin at 11 a.m. at the Department of Water and Power, with a brief ceremony to honor the team. Riding in double-decker buses, the Lakers then will travel from 1st and Hope Streets to Figueroa Street, then through downtown to Staples Center. A rally at the arena will culminate the celebration.
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