Kobe Bryant netted 40 points for the 100th time as the Los Angeles Lakers avoided their third straight loss against the Detroit Pistons last night at the Staples Center. Detroit created a late game run after being down 25 heading into the fourth quarter, proceeding to outscore LA 30-18. Unfortunately for them not enough time remained, resulting in a 106-93 Lakers victory.

Bryant now trails just Michael Jordan (173) and Wilt Chamberlain (271) on the NBA’s list of most career 40-point games. “It’s a true honor,” said Bryant. “A lot of work went into it, and when I look back on that, I can’t believe I had 100 of those games. It’s just a good feeling.”

The Lakers will be hosting the Chicago Bulls tonight before the Oklahoma City Thunder make their way to LA on Sunday. Los Angeles Lakers tickets are available now!

Kobe Bryant led his defending champion Los Angeles Lakers with 29 points as they went on to outscore the Phoenix Suns 121-102 last night at the Staples Center. Steve Nash and the Suns have failed to beat the Lakers in five of their last six matchups. LA didn’t have any problems playing right along and overshadowing the Suns run and gun type style.

“It’s just tough matchups all around,” Phoenix said coach Alvin Gentry. “They just took us out of everything we tried to do. We miss a dunk, and they come back with a three-point play. We miss an open shot, and then they come down with a 3-point shot. They’re a great basketball team. I don’t know if they have a weakness, after looking around.”

Andrew Bynum in his first game back from elbow problems earned game MVP rights with 26 points and 15 rebounds.  “I got my legs back, and I’m fresh,” said Bynum. “As far as the elbow goes, I’m going to continue getting treatment. It hurts a little bit, but it’s going to be that way for a little while.”

Jared Dudley led the Suns in scoring with 14 points off the bench.  They are next set to host the Toronto Raptors on Sunday. This Friday the Lakers will be tested in a rematch of last year’s Western Conference finals verses the Denver Nuggets.

Kobe Bryant after receiving his fourth NBA Championship ring went back to work with 33 points as the Los Angeles Lakers went on to defeat their in-town rival LA Clippers 99-92 at the Staples Center. Every Laker on the team earned a ring from their 2008-2009 title except for Ron Artest, who joined the squad after trading places with now Houston Rockets small forward Trevor Ariza earlier this year.

Andrew Bynum on his 22nd birthday contributed with 26 points and 13 rebounds. While the Lakers were somewhat distracted by the banners, crowd and general memories of the summers events, the Clippers actually hung around. Eric Gordon, Marcus Camby and Chris Kaman netted 21, 18, and 14 in their efforts to stay with the defending champs.  All it took was a Kobe/Odom take over early in the fourth for the Lakers to pull away.

“It’s always tough to play games after those kind of ceremonies,” said Lakers coach Phil Jackson (Has won ten NBA titles as head coach with Chicago/LA). “Some of the energy is always difficult to maintain because there is a lot of energy that’s kind of dissipated when you go out and have that kind of ceremony. You’re not ready to step up and march to the tune of this season right yet.” 

The Lakers will next welcome the Dallas Mavericks to LA this Friday at 10:30 PM ET. Los Angeles Lakers tickets are available now!

The New York Yankees felt as though ending two games in extra innings was quite enough for this year’s American League Championship Series.  CC Sabathia allowed just one run in eight innings pitched on three days rest, as the Bronx Bombers powered up the Los Angeles Angels last night at Angel Stadium of Anaheim 10-1. 

Alex Rodriguez led the lineup with three hits, two RBIs, three runs scored, and one tall jack to left field in the fifth inning. A-Rod has been on fire throughout the entire 2009 postseason. This ALCS alone he is six for sixteen with three homers and five RBIs. His three consecutive games with a home run puts him just one away from sharing a Yankee record along with legends Lou Gehrig and Reggie Jackson.

“Well, the game slows down for you, no doubt about it,” said Rodriguez. “You feel like you want to see the ball and hit it hard and not try to do too much, but the best way I can describe it is you feel like the game is slowing down.”

The Series will feature one more game in Anaheim before moving back to New York if necessary. A.J. Burnett (Yankees) and John Lackey (Angels) are set to pitch Game 5, which is scheduled for tomorrow at 7:57 PM.

ALCS and World Series tickets are available now!

Another ALCS extra innings thriller in the books between the Los Angeles Angels and the New York Yankees last night at Angel Stadium of Anaheim.  New York was leading for the majority of the contest, with Derek Jeter starting off the festivities right with a solo home run in the first. The Angels surged back mid-game and finally put the night to rest in the 11th when Jeff Mathis drove in Howie Kendrick with a two-out double for LA to win 5-4.

“There was a lot of great baseball on that field this afternoon,” said Angels manager Mike Scioscia. “There were a lot of twists and turns, and both teams played a terrific game. We just got it done at the end.” The crucial win for LA put them one game behind in the series with Games 4 and 5 to be played on the west coast.

Andy Pettitte and Jered Weaver both pitched solid for their respective clubs, letting up three runs apiece in five plus innings of work. The Yankees already ahead in the series with two wins can only look forward to strengthening their lead tonight.

“It was disappointing (Monday), but I don’t think anyone in here is frustrated,” Damon said. “We know we’re still up in the series and we know we have the big man going (Tuesday), and he’s been pretty good for us.” The ‘Big Man’ he is referring to is ace pitcher CC Sabathia, who will start tonight for the Yanks against the 10-9 Scott Kazmir. Game 4 is scheduled for 7:57 PM.

ALCS tickets are available now!

The highly anticipated Phillies Dodgers NLCS rematch will start up at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on Thursday, October 15th. In 2008 the World Champion Philadelphia Phillies dominated Los Angeles in just five games, but this season the Dodgers certainly believe they have done enough to give themselves a better chance. LA now has left hander’s Clayton Kershaw and Randy Wolf (former Phillie) to counter Philadelphia’s strong offense. 

The Phillies have been playing some great baseball themselves, taking four games to knock out the Colorado Rockies in their division series. Wolf looking ahead goes into how the Phillies starting rotation will be quite the challenge. “With Philly, they have a relentless lineup, and even though Cole Hamels isn’t having a typical season, he can dominate. Cliff Lee is a big acquisition, and going against lefties has been a little tough for us.”  Wolf continued to speak on behalf of predictions, saying “we were supposed to be swept by the Cardinals. If nobody picks us, that’s fine.” Here he is referring to the Dodgers quick three game ALDS sweep on St Louis. 

NLCS Series Schedule - Starting Rotations and Game Times TBD

Game 1 - Thursday, October 15th - Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA

Game 2 - Friday, October 16th - Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA

Game 3 - Sunday, October 18th - Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA

Game 4 - Monday, October 19th - Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA

Game 5 - Wednesday, October 21st - Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA

Game 6 - Friday, October 23rd - Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA

Game 7 - Saturday, October 24th - Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA

NLCS tickets are available now!

The American League Championship Series is set to start this Friday and will feature the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Angels. New York led the American League this regular season with 103 wins and the AL West Champion Angels followed with a 97-65 record. Both clubs handled their ALDS opponents with ease and surely are excited to continue their October playoff quests.

Yankees veteran catcher Jorge Posada is very satisfied with his team and what they have set themselves up for. “It’s going to come down who is going to pitch best, who is going to hit in the clutch,” Posada said in regard to the upcoming series. “Home-field advantage is going to help a little bit. I think that’s the key to this series, having four games at home is going to change things.”

Starting rotations have not been officially released, but Game 1 will likely showcase a duel between aces CC Sabathia and John Lackey.  The 2009 ALCS will serve as the fourth post-season meeting between the Angels and Yankees, but will be the first time they match up for American League Championship rights. 

ALCS Schedule - Times and Starting Pitchers for Games 2-7 TBD

Game 1 - Friday, October 16th - Yankee Stadium, New York, NY

Game 2 - Saturday, October 17th - Yankee Stadium, New York, NY

Game 3 - Monday, October 19th - Angel Stadium, Anaheim, CA

Game 4 - Tuesday, October 20th - Angel Stadium, Anaheim, CA

Game 5 - Thursday, October 22nd - Angel Stadium, Anaheim, CA

Game 6 - Saturday, October 24th - Yankee Stadium, New York, NY

Game 7 - Sunday, October 25th - Yankee Stadium, New York, NY

ALCS tickets are available now!

In the bottom of the ninth inning in yesterday’s NLDS Game matchup, the St Louis Cardinals held the 2-1 advantage over the Los Angeles Dodgers with just one out to go. Left fielder Matt Holliday was given the opportunity to catch a routine fly to even up the series heading back to St Louis.  “I didn’t see the ball,” Holliday said. “Obviously, I can catch a ball that’s hit right at me. It’s very difficult to swallow. We had a chance to win the game. It was unfortunate that it happened when it did.” The crucial E-7 was followed by two singles from Ex-Cardinal Ronnie Belliard and pinch-hitter Mark Loretta for the Dodgers to win 3-2. 

Loretta, former Red Sox second basemen, really felt the momentum shift their way with a second chance.  “Unfortunately, I did know the numbers,” said Loretta. “I really didn’t have a lot of nerves. I felt like all the pressure was on them at that point. I was fortunate to find a little bit of fairway out there.” Game 3 is scheduled for tomorrow at 6:07 PM in St Louis.

NLDS tickets are available now!

Dodgers outfielder Matt Kemp homered in the 1st inning to deep center field, setting the tone for Los Angeles as the bullpen worked together to harness the Cardinals lineup to just one run from the 4th inning on last night at Dodger Stadium.  Jeff Weaver picked up the Game 1 NLDS win in relief, shutting down the St Louis offense in his one inning pitched. Shortstop Rafael Furcal led the Dodgers from the plate with three hits and a bonus RBI in the 5th.

The Cardinals scattered 11 hits throughout the game despite putting only three runs on the board. “We had too many chances, too many chances,” said third basemen Mark DeRosa, who left two runners on base in the third inning. “Their bullpen came in, and inning after inning, we didn’t get the big hit we needed.” Game 2 is scheduled for today at 3:07 pm.

NLDS tickets can be found right here at AceTicket.com!

Boston Red Sox manager Terry Francona has announced the starting rotation for their ALDS showdown against the Los Angeles Angels this week.  Jon Lester will get the nod for Game 1 against Angels right-hander John Lackey.  Game 2 will feature Red Sox ace pitcher Josh Beckett against the 16-8 Jered Weaver. Clay Buchholz will take Game 3 for Boston with Games 4 and 5 left up to Francona, who will consider either Daisuke Matsuzaka or Lester again on three-days rest.

Looking ahead to this series the Sox believe they can outpitch the Angels through their endless supply of heaters between the starting rotation and the bullpen.

“Not to take anything away from those finesse pitchers, but if that day, you don’t have your great stuff, your power arms seem to be able to get away with a little more,” said Red Sox third basemen Mike Lowell. “No matter what, it’s hard to hit 95 (mph) unless you’re throwing it down the middle. But I think there’s a little more leeway for a guy with a power arm to battle through a couple of innings where he doesn’t have sharp stuff and make an adjustment, than a guy who doesn’t have velocity, who might get touched up pretty early.”

The first Sox/Angels contest will take place either Tomorrow or this Thursday.  Boston Red Sox Playoff tickets are available now!