Lakers take control of the rivalry

If parting is such sweet sorrow, so might be the reunion, the Clippers probably none too thrilled to see the Lakers after losing to them by 38 last week . . . in a home game . . . in their season opener . . . after dropping red, white and blue streamers on their fans during pre-game festivities . . . after Baron Davis promised the crowd that this season would be different.

It's the Lakers' turn to be the home team tonight at Staples Center, the resumption of a down-the-hall rivalry that looked pretty ragged after the Lakers' 117-79 victory seven days ago.

The first quarter was actually competitive -- 30-27, Lakers -- but then the second unit sparked a 17-0 run and that was that.

The Lakers had more rebounds, assists, three-pointers, free throws, field goals, a better shooting percentage outside the arc, a better shooting percentage inside the arc, and fewer turnovers. The Clippers did have more steals.

The Lakers are now 3-0, the Clippers 0-4, and even the involved parties have trouble referring to this thing as a rivalry.

The Lakers are 38-11 against the Clippers since Kobe Bryant came into the league, but Bryant carefully chose his words Tuesday, allowing that the Lakers had "probably" swung back to dominance after splitting the season series with the Clippers from 2005-07.

Bryant, however, was emphatic about one thing. He did not want to revisit the fact that he almost became a Clipper when they offered him a lucrative free-agent contract in 2004.

"I don't know, I don't remember, and you're not pulling me into that . . . ," Bryant said Tuesday when asked if he could recount some of the details of his agonizing decision. "I'm not going for it. I'll pass on the bait. No te entiendo."

The last part was Spanish for "I don't understand you," but the point came across in any language -- he's happy to be where he is now.

The Lakers haven't lost a season series to the Clippers since 1992-93, but the Lakers were the ones who failed to hold up their end of the bargain in 2006, fumbling a 3-1 series lead against Phoenix and missing out on a "Hallway Series" against their Staples Center co-tenants. (Phoenix went on to beat the Clippers in seven games in the Western Conference semifinals.)

Since then, there have been five consecutive Lakers victories against the Clippers, making rivalry questions so moot that queries of greater historical context are almost in order.