In brief: Bryant’s 30 points pace Lakers to win
NBA: Kobe Bryant scored 30 points, Pau Gasol added 22 points and 15 rebounds, and the Los Angeles Lakers methodically pounded the ball inside for a no-nonsense 111-103 home victory over the Utah Jazz Tuesday, taking a 2-0 lead in their second-round playoff series.
Andrew Bynum had 17 points and 14 rebounds for the defending NBA champions.
Los Angeles is 40-1 in franchise history after winning the first two games of a seven-game series.
For the third straight postseason, the Lakers have a 2-0 series lead over the Jazz after consecutive wins at Staples Center, where Utah has lost 16 straight games – including eight in the playoffs.
Game 3 is Saturday in Salt Lake City.
•Howard, Magic crush Hawks: Dwight Howard had 21 points and 12 rebounds in one of the most crushing playoff wins in Magic history, a 114-71 victory over the Atlanta Hawks in Orlando, Fla., in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinal.
Howard added five blocks and avoided the fouls and frustration that overwhelmed him in the first round, helping the Magic go ahead by as many as 46 points. Vince Carter finished with 20 points as Orlando showed no signs of rust after an eight-day layoff.
Josh Smith scored 14 points and Zaza Pachulia had 12 for Atlanta. Game 2 in the best-of-7 series is Thursday night in Orlando.
•Johnson, Casey in running for Hornets job: The New Orleans Hornets have conducted the first two interviews of their coaching search, meeting with former Dallas coach Avery Johnson and current Mavericks assistant Dwane Casey.
•Azubuike stays with Warriors: Golden State Warriors guard Kelenna Azubuike has exercised the player option in his contract for the 2010-11 season.
The 26-year-old Azubuike appeared in only nine games this past season before being sidelined with a torn patellar tendon in his left knee.
•Thunder extend Brooks’ contract: The Thunder exercised a team option on Scott Brooks’ contract that will allow the NBA’s coach of the year to remain in Oklahoma City through 2012.
•Orlando will host 2012 All-Star game: Twenty years after hosting one of the most memorable moments in its history, NBA commissioner David Stern announced that the league’s All-Star game and weeklong festivities will return to Orlando in 2012 at the Magic’s new arena.
Marleau’s goal puts Wings in 3-0 hole
NHL: Patrick Marleau scored 7:07 into overtime, lifting the San Jose Sharks to a 4-3 comeback road win over the Detroit Red Wings and a 3-0 lead in the second-round series.
The Red Wings led 3-1 with 13 minutes left in regulation.
Game 4 is Thursday night in Detroit, where the Red Wings will try to stay alive. The two-time defending Western Conference champions haven’t been swept since the first round in 2003 by Anaheim.
Joe Thornton scored 6:42 into the third to pull San Jose within a goal and Logan Couture tied it with 6:43 left.
Tomas Holmstrom and Dan Cleary gave Detroit a 2-0 lead in the first. San Jose’s Devin Setoguchi scored with 4 seconds left in the period, but Henrik Zetterberg restored Detroit’s two-goal lead early in the second.
•Malkin’s goal leads way for Penguins: Evgeni Malkin scored a power-play goal 1:16 into the third period and Marc-Andre Fleury made 18 saves for his fourth NHL playoff shutout, lifting the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 2-0 road win over the Montreal Canadiens and a 2-1 lead in the Eastern Conference semifinal series.
Malkin took Sergei Gonchar’s pass and fired a one-timer from the right side past Jaroslav Halak to give the Penguins a 1-0 edge. Alex Goligoski also assisted on Malkin’s fifth goal of the playoffs, but first since Game 4 of the Penguins’ first-round win against Ottawa.
Jones works out again for Bengals
NFL: Cornerback Adam “Pacman” Jones got a second look from the Cincinnati Bengals, an indication that the team with a history of trying to rehabilitate troubled players might be considering its next project.
The Bengals hadn’t made a formal contract proposal.
•Reilly heads back to Washington: The Seattle Seahawks claimed former Central Washington University quarterback Mike Reilly off of waivers from St. Louis.
Reilly, who started his college career at Washington State, put up record breaking numbers at Central, but went undrafted in 2009.
16 million tuned in for Kentucky Derby
Horse racing: More than 16 million people watched Super Saver’s win in the Kentucky Derby, making it the most-watched Derby in 21 years.