Phoenix : An inspirational Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers booked their place in the NBA Finals by beating the Phoenix Suns 111-103 in Game Six on Saturday to win the Western Conference championship series 4-2.
The Lakers, who clinched their 15th NBA title last year, held off a spirited late fightback by the Suns to finish off the series at the first attempt and will face the Boston Celtics in the best-of-seven final.
All-Star guard Bryant top scored for Los Angeles with 37 points on 12-for-25 shooting from the field while forward Ron Artest weighed in with 25 points and veteran Derek Fisher 11.
Amar'e Stoudemire contributed 27 points for the Suns, who clawed their way back from an 18-point deficit in the second half to trail by just three with two minutes remaining.
Not impossible
"With a three-point shooting team like Phoenix, you know that any lead is not impossible," Lakers coach Phil Jackson told reporters.
"As they showed, we have an 18-point lead and they're right back in the game in a matter of minutes."
The Lakers will host the Celtics for Game One of the NBA Finals on Thursday, the 12th time the arch-rivals will face off in the championship series.
"We will see how much we have matured," Bryant said. "They challenged us extremely well in the finals a couple of years ago. Now it's a test to see how much we've grown."
Saturday's game began at a frenetic pace and, with both teams shooting accurately, there were eight lead changes before the Lakers grabbed a 37-34 advantage after the first quarter.
