Cavs 'Smush' Lakers, 102-101
Boozer scoreless with three offensive rebounds in limited action vs. L.A.
SAN DIEGO - Rookie Smush Parker hit a 3-pointer with 4.4 seconds left to lift the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 102-101 exhibition victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night.
The Carlos Boozer Archive
Parker, a 6-foot-3 guard who left Fordham after his sophomore year, hit a wide open shot from the left side to give Cleveland (2-3) the win.
The shot ruined Kobe Bryant's heroics down the stretch for the Lakers (2-4).
Bryant struggled with his shooting, going just 6-of-19 from the field. But he made two big baskets in the final 70 seconds that kept the Lakers in front.
Bryant, who scored 16 points, hit a running 10-footer at the baseline with 1:10 left for a 99-95 lead. He followed with a flying dunk off a rebound to put Los Angeles ahead 101-97 with 31 seconds left.
But the Cavaliers pulled within 101-100 on Ricky Davis' three-point play. Samaki Walker then missed two free throws with 19 seconds left before Parker hit his shot.
Bryant had one final chance, but missed a 15-foot jumper against a double team at the buzzer.
Darius Miles led the Cavaliers with 22 points and 10 rebounds and Zydrunas Ilgauskas added 21 points.
Cleveland rookie power forward Carlos Boozer Jr., a 1999 Juneau-Douglas High School graduate, only played five minutes off the bench. Boozer scored no points on 0-for-2 shooting, but he grabbed three offensive rebounds in his limited action.
Derek Fisher led the Lakers with 18 points.