L.A. Times: The Lakers looked a bit flat Friday night against the Dallas Mavericks, as if they needed to be energized.
Forward Trevor Ariza gave the Lakers the jolt they needed, his boost of energy helping them pull out a 114-107 victory over the Mavericks at Staples Center.
Ariza had a season high in points (15) and field goals made (seven). He took only 12 shots, and had five rebounds, three assists, one blocked shot and one steal.
“I guess I’ll start with the fact that he made a lot of tough shots tonight, which really isn’t something we rely on him to do,” Lakers Coach Phil Jackson said. “But he was able to get the ball in the lane, make the tough shots after he got the ball in the spot where he could convert. He made a number of open shots that were important to us to have at that time of the game.”
Ariza took all of his shots in the second half.
He entered the third quarter with 9:48 left for Vladimir Radmanovic and never left the game.
The Lakers trailed by 12 points when Ariza went to work.
His put-back dunk and a layup got the Lakers started.
“I just took the shots that were open,” Ariza said. “They were playing off me and I was open and I was shooting.”
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