Not with the Lakers leading from start to finish in a 113-100 victory, drilling the Jazz with a 37-point first quarter and closing with 16-7 run punctuated by Trevor Ariza's steal, dunk and three-point play at C.J. Miles' expense with 2:19 remaining.

"They're playing at a great level. We're just staying afloat," Deron Williams said. "We have a chance to be [as good] once we get healthy, once we get everybody back and start playing like we're capable of."

For now, the Jazz (19-15) trail the Lakers by 8 1/2 games not even halfway through the season. Kobe Bryant scored 40 points, Pau Gasol added 21 points and 11 rebounds and the Lakers beat the Jazz for an eighth consecutive time at the Staples Center.

After trailing by as many as 20 in the first half, the Jazz closed to 65-62 in the third quarter after a Miles' three-pointer. Almost as quickly as the Jazz got back in the game, however, the Lakers

pushed back in front by double digits.

The Jazz's frustration was evident as coach Jerry Sloan was called for a technical after Williams drove and was blocked by Andrew Bynum with no foul called. As Sloan noted afterward, Williams played 42 minutes and went to the foul line exactly twice.

With Bryant hounding him, Williams closed the quarter with a turnover and was called for his first technical of the season during the break between quarters. He was pointed in his comments after the game about not getting the same calls as last season.

"I'm a rookie, man. I'm a rookie," said Williams, who finished with 10 points and 12 assists, but shot 4-for-18. "This is my first season in the NBA. There's no superstar calls or anything, anyways. No veteran calls. There's no such thing."

Sasha Vujacic converted the free throw after Williams' technical to give the Lakers an 82-66 lead to start the fourth. The Lakers went 32 of 42 from the line, compared to 20 of 25 for the Jazz.

The Jazz got as close as 97-93 after Andrei Kirilenko's dunk with 2:58 to play, but Ariza made the play of the game in stripping Miles and heading the other way for a dunk, compounded by Miles' foul as he gave chase.

It was the first of two steals for Ariza in the final three minutes, leaving Sloan to say, "We put it right out there for him to get. I think I could've gotten a steal on those two.

"You can't just be happy to be close. That's when the toughness shows. Our toughness at the end was nonexistent and that's what young guys have got to learn to do."

Once again, the Jazz buried themselves in the first quarter, in which they gave up a season-high 37 points and fell behind by 17. Williams landed hard on his injured ankle and left with 5:20 to go in the quarter to change shoes and have his ankles retaped.

Williams returned to play the entire second, third and fourth quarters.

"We didn't look like we wanted to play at all the first quarter," Sloan said. "We had a tough time to show any energy or emotion about playing. It looked like we were bored to be here and they just wore us out."

rsiler@sltrib.com

Storylines

IN SHORT -- The Jazz trail by as many as 20 in losing their Western Conference semifinals rematch to the Lakers.

KEY MOMENT -- Trevor Ariza strips C.J. Miles and dunks as part of a three-point play with 2:19 remaining.

Key stat -- The Jazz never lead even as they close within three points in the third quarter and four in the fourth.

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