The Lakers have won 14 of their past 15 games. They have been undefeated for a full month, winning 10 consecutive games since April 8. All seven previous Lakers teams to start the postseason 6-0 — where these Lakers now stand — have reached the NBA Finals.

That said, oddsmakers have the Lakers as four-point underdogs for Game 3 of their second-round playoff series Friday night.

The home-court advantage of the Utah Jazz is that imposing.

"Their defense will be more aggressive," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said of the physical and thus far foul-prone Utah players, "if that's possible."

Utah is 39-5 at home this season, and in its last home appearance the Jazz annihilated Houston by 22 points to finish the first round. With guard Deron Williams calling the next two games in Utah "must-win games," the Jazz players are determined to start fast and not play from behind, as has been the case the first two games.

Lakers forward Lamar Odom said he expects the Jazz to play "100 percent better."

"You go in there with the idea of playing not to perfection, but as close as you can get to it," said Jackson, whose team lost in Utah by 24 points Nov. 30 but won by 11 on March 20 without injured Pau Gasol.

It will be a more advanced chemistry test than the one the Lakers aced two weeks ago in Game 3 in Denver. But Lakers forward Luke Walton believes his team — which posted the Western Conference's best regular-season road record at 27-14 — is equipped to handle the noise, altitude and adversity.

"This team is a better road team than home team," Walton said, citing home slip-ups this season against Charlotte and Memphis in late March.

Kobe Bryant, who historically fares well with his individual game on the road, harked back to a line from one of his favorite movies, "Hoosiers."

"The basket's 10 feet, no matter where you go," he said.

It will be a full circle of sorts for Bryant, as he ended his 1996-97 rookie season in Utah with a series of air balls in the Lakers' second-round elimination.

"The shots felt good," said Bryant, who cited the fatigue of going from high-school play to an NBA season. "I just had to look at my training and some other stuff I was doing."

Derek Fisher, Bryant's fellow Lakers rookie on that 1996-97 team, will have a more substantial personal distraction awaiting him in Utah, because he played there last season and helped the Jazz to the West finals. In search of specialized local health care for his cancer-stricken daughter, Fisher was released from his Utah contract and wound up with the Lakers.

He was booed consistently in the Lakers' first trip to Salt Lake and acknowledged being rattled by it in a poor performance (Williams outscored Fisher, 35-3). In the Lakers' second trip there, Fisher said he was prepared for the negativity and played well — although the booing also abated early in the game.


NOTES


Trevor Ariza had a bone scan Thursday that showed his fractured right foot is still not healed, and the Lakers plan to wait another two to three weeks before seeking final medical clearance. Ariza, who hasn't played in 3 1/2 months, is scheduled to see a foot specialist Friday in Salt Lake City and wants to get better news, saying: "It feels fine; no pain. I'm hoping it's healed all the way." …

Andrew Bynum, who is hoping to avoid arthroscopic surgery at month's end on his left knee, is scheduled to see another specialist in Connecticut on Monday. Bynum isn't expected to play again this season, and surgery would further complicate the Lakers' offseason plans to negotiate a lucrative contract extension beyond the remaining year on Bynum's rookie contract. …

Bryant was the lone unanimous selection to the All-NBA first team Thursday with 635 points. Gasol was the only other Laker to receive votes, getting five points to tie with Shaquille O'Neal and Caron Butler. … Only 19 teams have come back from 2-0 deficits in best-of-7 NBA playoff series, but Utah did it last season against Houston.

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