Bryant, O'Neal give Lakers 2-1 series lead

Kobe Bryant had 31 points and Shaquille O'Neal added 22 points and 15 rebounds as the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the San Antonio Spurs 99-89 in their Western Conference semifinal on Friday.

The win gave the Lakers a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven playoff series, which continues with Game Four in San Antonio on Sunday afternoon. The series returns to Los Angeles for Game Five on Tuesday.

The Lakers pulled away in the second half thanks to Bryant, who scored four of his baskets in the final five minutes of the game.

O'Neal fought off a nagging hand injury to make several key baskets as the Lakers recovered after losing Game Two in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

Derek Fisher added 13 points to the LA attack, while Samaki Walker collected 12 points.

Tim Duncan had 28 points and pulled down 12 rebounds for the Spurs, while rookie point guard Tony Parker added 24 points. Malik Rose chipped in with 10.

David Robinson returned to the San Antonio lineup but clearly showed some ill-effects from his lower back injury as he managed just six points and six rebounds in 22 minutes.

He was also in foul trouble for most of the game on his return after playing only a few minutes of the post-season.

Los Angeles has now won 10 consecutive post-season games on the road, and the noisy crowd at the Alamodome did little to bother Bryant and O'Neal down the stretch as they helped the Lakers pull away.

The game remained close until the final quarter, with neither team getting more than a six-point lead for the first 45 minutes.

San Antonio got to within 81-80 on a Duncan basket with 6:28 left, but Bryant and company then took over.