Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - Kobe Bryant scored 13 of his season-high 35 points in the fourth quarter, guiding the Los Angeles Lakers to a 114-107 comeback win over the Dallas Mavericks.
Bryant finished 14-of-26 from the field, and Andrew Bynum tallied 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Lakers, who won their sixth straight game and improved to an NBA-best 13-1. It's the best start for the Lakers since winning 16 of their first 17 to begin the 2001-02 campaign.
Derek Fisher scored 19 and Trevor Ariza 15 for the Lakers, who went on a 17-0 run bridging the end of the third quarter and start of the fourth. Pau Gasol chipped in 14 points and seven boards in the win.
Jason Terry came off the bench for 29 points for Dallas, which had its five- game winning streak broken. Dirk Nowitzki scored 19 and pulled down 12 rebounds for the Mavericks, who blew a 12-point lead in the third quarter. Jason Kidd finished with 12 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds.
Terry's basket extended Dallas to a 78-67 lead with less than four minutes left in the third, but Gasol's jumper started the game-changing run for Los Angeles. Nowitzki missed two straight shots, while Bryant nailed a jumper and Fisher hit a three.
Bryant's 17-foot jumper made it a two-point game, and Lamar Odom came up with a steal and fed Gasol for an alley-oop bucket, sending the lights flickering at the Staples Center.
It only got worse for the Mavericks, as Jose Barea missed a layup and Brandon Bass couldn't come up with the tip-in. At the other end, Gasol cleaned up Fisher's missed shot with a gritty tip-in with 37.9 seconds left, ultimately giving LA an 80-78 edge going to the fourth quarter.
A Bynum jam and Ariza layup culminated the burst, but Terry tried to keep the Mavs in the game, accounting for seven straight Dallas points. Kidd then hit two straight three-pointers, but the Lakers still led 98-93 at the midway point of the quarter.
Terry's layup had the Mavs within 110-105 with 54.8 seconds left, but Bryant countered with a rainbow shot to effectively seal the victory.
The Lakers had a 30-27 lead after one quarter, but the Mavs used their bench to surge ahead, 57-51, at the half. Dallas held a 35-2 scoring advantage at the half in bench points.
