>> he was going -- >> if i saw him maybe i would have made a shot. i didn't see him. >> did the crowd play a factor? >> i don't think. so i don't think. so we had control of the game most of the first half. they took it over in the second quarter. we fought back, tied the game up. they made big plays, and pietrus came in and gave a big production off the bench. rafer played extremely well. up to this pound -- point we had done a solid job on the bench. >> kobe bryant started hot, 7-10 in the first quarter, 17-points at the end of one but 4-15 the rest of the way. finished with 31 points, ten in the second half. the final three quarters he missed 10-12 down the stretch, and even more alarming, 5-10

from the stripe. he mentioning he struggles from the foul line in his press conference. >> anish, the fourth time in 173 career playoff games kobe hit from 50% or less from the line. >> rafer alston, one of the stars for orlando, 8-12, 20 points. >> rafer usually has a question but probably twittering. >> first question on the left side. mark? >> rafer, stan left you -- what point down the stretch without a point guard. you couldn't take that as a compliment. how did you feel about and it how did you bounce back? >> he told us he was looking for somebody that maybe get out there and maybe find a rhythm, stick some shots the first two games, myself, jameer were struggling to do so. stan and i have a great relationship. he understands that he is just trying to coach to win games.

i'm trying to play and help him win games and help the team. never one to take it personal. the first game i think i just said that it was a rhythm thing because i never had that done before. i never played like that, didn't -- second game i was able to find a flow in the game but not hit shots, and tonight i was able to make shots. >> rachel? >> you and i talk this morning about the conversation you had with stan. stan was just in here talking as well. he said that his great advice to you was play your game. how did you play your game? >> i was aggressive from start to finish, able to mix it up. that's what i do best, instead of standing on the three-point line. that's what you guys saw in me the first two games, stand on the three-point line as if i was ray allen. but tonight, get to the foul line, shoot the pullup, shoot the three. the bad thing tonight i had a

lot of turnovers, and the next game i will try to bring that down. >> you shot an nba record in the finals, 62.5%. what was working so well. >> we played more speed, more energy on the offensive end. we get down the floor, push it. a lot of pick-and-roll, which is our game, on dwight. dwight kicks it out. we get wide-open threes. if they don't double team, dwight goes one-on-one. they were fouling him and he was going to the line and making them. we shot 62.5% and almost lost the game. so we have to offend a way to defend these guys. start fouling kobe on three-point shots and pullup jumpers. that's what we're going to look at film tomorrow and work on. >> chris, on the -- >> rae fer in the corner. stan said that his pep talk to you was, he said play your game and that was it. said it took him two days to come up with that. what about yourself? what did you say to yourself in terms of self-motivation to get

yourself going in this game? >> i think i told myself the same thing. especially after game two. disappointed to good out there and not play the style of play i'm accustomed to doing, the style of play that allowed know get to this point in the nba and the style of play that allowed me to be successful individually and as a team and that was the most motivating thing and that's something i told myself, is to go out and, enjoy, have fun. you're playing in the nba finals, a dream come true and let it all hang out, and i was aable to get out there from start to finish, continue to attack not only the halfcourt offense but the fast-break offense. >> it was must, win for the magic. what's the lockerroom like after the win. >> believe it or not it's been the same after both losses. we understand what we need to do and that's the beauty of this

team. we don't hang our head. we encourage each other. we're able to take constructive criticism from one another. i think that's the best thing about this team. the lockerroom tonight is obviously happier because of the victory, but we understand it's still another must-win game come thursday. >> skip, a lot of people would say it's a different playing home and away. is at it difference? >> you're in your own bed, you can do your own think as opposed to being on the road and hiding because of what we have to do on the road. you don't want to rip and run on the road. you want get your rest, stay off your feet. here least you're in the confines of your own home. one thing about basketball if you can play, you can play. if you can't, you can't. and this league is full of guys who can play. >> back left. >> the first two games how shocking was it you didn't shoot

well and was it just a matter of time it broke through for the team? >> it was shocking. we have a team that does shoot well. they were doubling dwight in the staples center both nights and he was making good passes, turkoglu was making good passes, rashard found his rhythm and we still needed the rest of us here tonight. they were giving us the same shots, making the same plays, and this league is a make and miss league. first two games i'm missing, i look horrible. tonight i'm making them and look good. that's what the league is bat, make and miss. >> skip, the distribution of minutes looked a lot like people thought they would, how much did the continuity you had, playing in the first quarter, and same in the second half. >> i think i helped myself with that one, by making shots. coach leaves me in the game.

missing shots, he pulls me out. we need jameer to get going. he encourages me and i encourage him. i know his heart, psychologically because of injury, coming back after a half-month layup but the minutes, again, after the first game, just a thing of finding a rhythm and staying in it, staying in the flow, this the way the first game went it was hard to gather a flow, but never once disappointed or upset or furious about the situation because stan is trying to coach to win, and tonight i was in a rhythm from start to finish, and i don't -- if he sat me i don't think tonight would have bothered me because i felt great all night. >> thank you, rafer. >> rafer alston, night and day from games one and two, did not make a single three-pointer, 3-17 from the field. scored a total of 10 points.

jameer nelson was seeing time. but alston stepped it up in game three, 20 points, 8-12 from the field. had four assists. and really was pretty good with the ball. only three turnovers for the game. one of five magic players with at least 18 points, a balanced scoring attack as orlando wins game three of the nba finals. superman, he came out of the fortress of solitude. 21 points, 5-6 from the field. we will hear from him coming up on espnews.

game three of the nba finals in orlando. lakers up 2-0.

magic going to their good luck charm singing the national anthem. orlando 6-0 when she sings. first quarter, kobe. they got off to a hot start. he made seven of his first ten field goals, 17 points in the first quarter. after l.a. once 2 or and talk of a possible letdown, kobe kicks it up. four-point play late in the first quarter. he had 21 at the half. second quarter, orlando could not miss. dwight howard, 13 of 16. the magic were in the second quarter, that's 81%. lewis the three. orlando shot 75% from the field in in first half. a finals record for field goal percentage in the half. a little defense as well. howard snuffing out kobe. kobe just scored 15 the rest of the way. third quarter, courtney lee. took a lot of heat for not being

able to finish game two. finishes there. rafer alston, 3-17 in the first two games. he came alive in orlando. 8-12. 20-points for skip to my lou. lakers made their first eight shots but good bench play by orlando. pietrus leading the attack gives them the lead. gasol, 23 points. lakers within three. it's kobe, only had two field goals in the fourth, this one of them. he finished with 31, just 10 in the second half. l.a. within two. tied at 99. turkoglu misses. pietrus, above the rim. he had 18 off the bench. magic by two. then it's rashard lewis. foot is on the line. it's a two orlando up by three. lakers ball down two.

it's kobe driving the bucket. fouled by dwight howard. kobe will good to the line to shoot two. normally a tremendous free-throw shooter. not so much here down the stretch. first free-throw attempt. he missed. kobe just 5-10 from the line. upset with himself. lakers down two. one more chance. kobe has it knocked away by pietrus. best closer in the game, hey, we saw rivera blow a save the other day. brad lidge was perfect last year and he has blown, what, fife or six this year. >> it happens from time to time. the magic with their first finals game in franchise history, 108-104. let's hear now from rashard lewis. one of five magic players with at least 18 points. >> how shocking was it the first two games you struggled to shoot

and tonight to break through. >> it was good to start knocking down shots. we knocked down shots all season long but there's always a game wheney don't shoot well and it hasn't during the playoffs as well, but eventually they start following. i thought we moved the ball around a lot and made the defense move from side-to-side. >> mark on the table. >> mark, "boston globe." rashard, talk about what has been the key for you offensively for the series. you have been pretty consistent. >> i think obviously with gasol in the game, you like stay around the paint, but i give a lot of credit to dwight howard. the way you run the pick-and-roll, two guys have to pick him up. they have to play close to him and it's leaving me wide open to shoot threes. odom was trying to go to the basket but a lot of the credit goes to dwight. when he pass the ball to him and

gets crowded, he made good passes out of the double-team. >> a lot of people might look at your contract and make criticism. talk about your play and you howe you use that as motivation and showing that is something not to talk about anymore. >> i made a contract situation always comes up, but it's to me is not really big deal. i just go out there to play basketball, and obviously playing bell -- well in the playoffs. my job is to do what stan wants know do. my number one option is dwight howard. hedo turkoglu, and i'm the third option and i'm still getting the job done. at the end of the dave if we win i don't care if i score five points. as long as we win i'm happy with that. >> can you talk about five players for the magic had 18 or

more. two guys with 18, three with 20 or more how about the balance for the magic? >> we had a balanced attack and we have been doing it all season long. that's another reason i don't have to average 20 or more points on the team because we have other guys thattening light it up. pietrus played well for us. skip to my lou got it started early in the first quarter. so we hauled a like 18 or 20 points and we have a balanced attack with the starters and guys off the bench. >> you got hammered in game one. you lost a close one in l.a. this was a must-win situation. i asked rafer. can you talk about the locker room and the importance on the next game? >> i mean, most definitely was a must-win situation. we didn't want to be down 3-0, playing on our homecourt. they're a tough team to beat. this was a good game tonight. the lockerroom was excited about winning the ballgame, but item

we know this game is over. now we have to focus on the next game and this team is going to come with more of a defensive effort. we shot the ball spectacular tonight and that's going to be the number one salt that they look at our percentage and will come with a tougher defense. >> in the back on your left. >> rashard, the team took 14 three-point attempts. probably the fewest in the playoffs and a record shooting percentage. was that by design? was that discussed? >> credit goes to the lakers defense. they were rung us off the three-point line. they know we live and die by the three-point line. bet the ball to dwight first. and those guys are doing a great defensive job of crowding dwight and pushing us off the three-point line and you have to do what the defense gives you. >> any other questions? thank you.

>> look what the magic have done in the finals. in the first two games in l.a. -- their offense was tremendous in game three. they set an nba finals record for shooting percentage in a game, shooting 63% if you round up. also shot 75%, which was a finals record, for hamp that what they did in the first half. 24-32. gasol, 9-11, 23 billions for l.a. here's what he had to say. >> a performance where from our end we played hard, we competed, we fought throughout the whole game. we started off well, and holding up to that first push that they were trying to give us in the first -- at the beginning of the game,. but overall we played well.

just -- do we do better but eave other aspect of the game, i don't think it's disappointing. more they shot the ball extremely well, played a very good game, but i'm happy about the evident -- effort we put out there and the way competed. >> next question for pau. right here on this side on one. >> pau, a lot of the games in the lockerroom were saying you lost an opportunity to steal the game. phil thought you controlled the tempo of the game. side do you come down on? >> we i think we controlled the tempo of the game pretty good. they didn't get any fast breaks or too many easy looks. they tried to push tempo a lot more, but i think we did okay as far as controlling it. obviously it was a close game, a game that we would have loved to win.

but it kind of went the other way. so, we got to get ready tomorrow, make the adjustments necessary for game four, and definitely go after it in game four and try to make it our game. >> right in the middle. >> what was different about dwight howard tonight in your opinion? >> um, well, obviously he plays with a little more energy. he is allowed to do physically a couple more things here at home, so basically that's what he was. he shot the ball pretty well from the field. the looks he had. he didn't have that many looks, i think. we w were doing a good job controlling him pretty well. but obviously they -- set as lot of screens, rolls on the lane, goes to the boards really hard

and does a good job of that, and we tried to keep up with that and do a good job also. so, i think he had a good game. that's about it. nothing exceptional. >> last question on this side in the back. >> do you think he was able to get more catches under the basket tonight than in the past and how much tougher is he to defend when he does catch it that low? >> um, maybe he got a couple more touches in the pant -- paint than the prior games but it wasn't something too substantial, i think. so he was more -- a little more aggressive, and he rolled hard into the lane and it's tough to guard there, hard to hold him up. but even with all that i think we did a pretty good job of holding our ground and trying to be there and make it tough for him. so, we're had an opportunity to do that in game four.

it's going to continue to happen. >> thank you. >> thank you, guys. have a good night. >> look at the longest road losing streak in nba finals history. lakers have now lost seven in a row. the fort wayne pistons in 1955- 1956, also lost seven straight in the n finals. >> here's superman now. >> we tried to get the ball out of his hands, making everybody else make plays, but with kobe, he had it going, you know. we had nothing for him in the first half. the biggest thing was in the first quarter and throughout the game, when we got into him, made him put the ball on the floor and attack the rim, it's tough on him to score, but when he is coming off, pump-faking to the

line, it's very hard for him. very hard for us to guard him. actually, just tried to be patient when i got the ball. tried to finish. their guys play very tough, physical in the paint. my teammates found me good spots to score so i tried to do the best i could. >> rachel? >> are you okay? >> you guys shot 75% in the first half, ended up with the find record 62 and a half percent. what was that like to have the flood gates open after the frustration of the first two games? >> felt good. i think we were taking better shots tonight, you know. we didn't rush. we attacked and allowed us to get easier shots instead of us

shooting the ball with a big guy, lamar, or gasol in our face. we did a good job of getting to the rim and skip did a good job of attacking and allowing guys to get open for free shots. so we have to do that against a team like the lakers, make them move and try to get easier shots, and we did a good job of that tonight. i think rashard did a great job of getting open. we found him in good spots and he knocked down shots. >> what's the difference on the bench when you guys are shooting like that versus maybe in some certain times in the last couple games you were shooting maybe 30%? >> they wanted to shoot more. once they see they're making shots, everybody wants to shoot, so u think our confidence rises once a couple guys make shots, and we don't hang our head. even though we did miss some shots tonight, we kept attacking, and hedo was great

attacking the rim. skip did a good job of attacking and finding guys. open shots, we did a great job of getting open shots tonight. so i think we got to continue to do that if he want to shoot a high percentage. >> john in the back. >> you talked about how resilient you have been in the playoff, down against philly and boston and cleveland. >> we lost two games but there's no need to roll over. it's a seven-game series. a team has to beat you four times to end the series, and we felt good, knowing that we had three games at home, and we really wanted to get the first one tonight. we're happy we won but not satisfied. there's a lot of areas that we need to work on item prove our chances of winning. i think we got to do a good job of taking care of the ball, especially coming down the

stretch. as a team we got to be able to not turn the ball over as much, and i think we did that tonight, but we got two more games here, and we got to pick it up. >> mark, standing on the left. >> rashard's play throughout the playoffs, do you car -- consider him one of the more underrated players. >> we don't care what nobody says about our size. we got to understand what he does best, which is shoot the ball and attack, and when he is playing with a lot of freedom he does a lot of different things. the president enjoys robust approval ratings at this time and he knows that to strike while the iron is hot, if you will. but to do it in a unilateral way without republican input, without trying to join together on the things we can agree with

is a huge mistake. we are talking about a system that currently absorbs 17% of the gross domestic product and by the year 2017, it will be up to 20% of our gross domestic product. some $4.5 billion, i'm sorry, $4.5 trillion. this is more -- this $4.5 trillion is more than the combined gdp of japan, germany, and the u.k.. so, we are now talking small potatoes, paul, and you're absolutely right. we need to take our time and hopefully we will be able to do that and have bill on something that can work. there's a number of things. health i.t., electronic medical records. i think the republican party would agree we need to go in that direction. to equalize the tax treatment of a health care benefit. those who work for an employer

gets a very nice tax exclusion that covers outstanding health care and many cases it includes prescription drug benefit but if somebody isn't working for a larger employer or is the sole proprietor or certainly if they are out of work, they have to go into the individual market, pay higher rates because they don't have the delusion affect the would have on a lot of lives covered, and they get no tax break. that's not fair so we clearly need to equalize that. there are just so many things that hopefully we will have time in the show to talk about, because we, too, we are not in the party of no, we clearly understand that our system could be better, should be better. is the greatest system in the world. most people are happy with health care and we certainly don't want to throw the baby out with the bathwater. >> host: question from david of ohio wondering if ron paul is

a member of the gop doctors caucus? >> dr. paul is a member of the gop doctors caucus. he's an outstanding member of the republican conference and outstanding physician. he is ob/gyn who is probably delivered more babies than i have. i have respect for him and when dr. paul speaks we all listen. >> host: another doctor is dr. colburn from oklahoma who will be joining tomorrow. last call, where are you from? >> caller: [inaudible] >> host: go ahead, frank. >> caller: i would like to ask mr. gingrey -- >> host: we can hear you, go ahead. >> caller: i would like to ask mr. gingrey [inaudible] they pushed it through and how we get a democrat