Why do Bobcats have Lakers' number?

So just what is it that the Charlotte Bobcats have on the Los Angeles Lakers?

They've won five of the past six against the Lakers, which is as confounding as any head-to-head series in sports. So we rounded up the box scores from those five victories to see if there was any pattern.

The numbers suggest the Lakers don't guard much and sure don't rebound.

In those five losses, the Lakers are giving up 46 percent shooting from the field and the Bobcats average 5.4 more rebounds. The points allowed are even worse, but that can be explained away by four overtime periods in those five games.

The Bobcats have historically been among the worst rebounders in the league their first four seasons, yet they beat up the Lakers on the boards. Go figure.

The other factor is Kobe Bryant's temper, if not the assumption the referees will leave him in the game. Bryant fouled out in two of the five losses and was ejected for two technicals in a third.