The Los Angeles Lakers are halfway to another NBA Finals series after a 124-112 victory over the Phoenix Suns Wednesday gave them a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference finals. Pau Gasol scored 14 of his 29 points in the fourth quarter, and Kobe Bryant had 21 points and 13 assists as the Lakers roared away in the final minutes. Ron Artest scored 18 points for Los Angeles, which won its eighth straight playoff game and moved within striking distance of a tantalizing NBA Finals showdown with the Boston Celtics, who lead Orlando 2-0 in the East. For the second straight game, the chants rained down from the Staples Center crowd in the final minutes: “We want Boston!” The Lakers remained unbeaten at home in the postseason despite a much-improved effort from the Suns, who lost the opener by 21 points. Phoenix tied it at 90-90 heading to the final period, but Gasol and Bryant flawlessly led the Lakers to another high-scoring victory. “We've been able to play both styles of basketball,” Los Angeles coach Phil Jackson said. “We like to control the pace, but we feel comfortable if it's an accelerated pace.” The Lakers certainly seem to be accelerating the Suns' exit from the playoffs after hitting better than 57 percent of their shots and scoring a jaw-dropping 252 points in the first two games. Game 3 is Sunday in Phoenix. But unless the Suns figure out a way to stop Los Angeles' versatile, poised offense, the Lakers and Celtics could be just a few days away from another chapter in their storied rivalry. “We can't slow them down,” Phoenix coach Alvin Gentry said. “We played well offensively, but every time we tried to make an adjustment to slow them down offensively, they would go somewhere else. There's a good reason they're the world champs, but we'll keep plugging away, keep trying.” Los Angeles has lost only one best-of-seven playoff series in franchise history after taking a 2-0 lead, winning the other 41. The 15-time champions haven't won eight straight games in the same postseason since their famous one-loss run through the 2001 playoffs. The crowd booed Amare Stoudemire, who Tuesday belittled Lamar Odom's 19-point, 19-rebound performance in the opener as “a lucky game.” Stoudemire appeared determined to back up his words with aggression, finishing with 18 points and six rebounds while Odom had 17 points and 11 boards in another superb game off the bench. Grant Hill scored 14 of his 23 points in the third quarter while Phoenix erased a 14-point deficit, playing with more efficiency and aggression than in Game 1. But the Lakers went back ahead by 11 midway through the fourth with a 9-0 run. Bryant set up Gasol for two tough baskets in the final minutes, with Gasol scoring with a flourish and drawing a foul each time. After scoring 40 points in 35 minutes in the series opener, Bryant embraced being a creator, repeatedly finding his teammates out of double teams while setting a career high for assists in a playoff game. Jason Richardson scored 27 points for Phoenix, and Steve Nash had 11 points and 15 assists. Jared Dudley hit five 3
