SAN ANTONIO — He had just toiled for 36 minutes, 20 seconds of the latest biggest game of his career.

Lamar Odom never has had one of his NBA seasons extended this far. Only one other time has his team played beyond the opening round of the playoffs.

And yet, there he was Sunday, after Game 3 of the Western Conference finals wishing there could be a Game 3b.

"It's messed up," Odom said, "but I feel like I could play again right now."

He was calling for more balling, and why? That's what can happen when you played a hollow game, when you didn't fill the boxscore or your heart, when you're forced to accept the fact you didn't do enough.

That's when you want to do more. And do it right away.

Since the NBA will schedule a game in which the players wear high heels before it will stage a playoff doubleheader, Odom's only choice was to retreat to his quiet, dark hotel room and sleep —with his eyes open.

"It's gonna be a tough night," he predicted, probably correctly seeing how it began with a 103-84 loss to the Spurs. "I won't get a lot of sleep. I'll keep the TV off. I probably won't read the newspaper in the morning."

There's really no need for Odom and the Lakers to read these words because the story already had become repetitive for them by the final buzzer Sunday.

Not enough offensive aggression. Not enough offensive execution. Not enough offense, period.

After a first quarter that established promise and a three-point lead, a quarter that even Coach Phil Jackson acknowledged gave him hope for a quick resolution to this series, the Lakers suddenly were dribbling in mud.

They then spent the final three quarters trying to reclaim their footing but still haven't found traction.

"I thought that we just got out of rhythm," Jackson said. "We couldn't get ourselves in rhythm in the last eight minutes of the second quarter. Obviously, the second half didn't go great for us either."

He was right, but also understand that Jackson wasn't even acknowledging the stretch when the Lakers became ham-handed and started hoisting frozen turkeys.

Putting the O in offense, they began the second quarter with three turnovers and three missed field-goal attempts wrapped around one moment of success, a Ronny Turiaf jumper.

A jumper from Ronny Turiaf? A player not known for his offensive skills? A guy whose best moves generally occur within inches of the rim?

That's how the Lakers — the lineup at the time was Odom and four reserves — reacted after earning a chance to keep the gasping Spurs down and even send San Antonio into summer as early as Tuesday.

"I kind of hurt the momentum of our team," said Odom, who, as the only starter on the floor, was given the keys to a 24-21 lead. "There's no way I can play that way. I put that on myself."

After that 24-point opening quarter, the Lakers needed more than 18 minutes to score another 24 points. By then, they were down double digits and the Spurs were back on their feet and in position to make this series interesting.

Had the Spurs teetering, the Lakers did, until allowing them to burst to life dramatically, similar to how Manu Ginobili (five three-pointers and 30 points) rejoined the living in Game 3.

Now San Antonio is only four quarters away from being in this thing and maybe even in the Lakers' heads. These Spurs already have won one series after trailing, 2-0.

"Those shots were impossible shots," Jackson said of a few of Ginobili's threes. "You just tap the guy on the rear end and say, `Good shot.' He played with a spur in his hind-end tonight."

While the Lakers played with Spurs everywhere else. Final second quarter score: Lakers 15, Ginobili 14.

Odom finished with 11 rebounds and six assists, both team bests, but he also scored only seven points, going 2 of 11 from the floor and 3 of 8 from the free-throw line.

As bad as the missed freebies were, he also was remarkably inaccurate from within whispering distance.

"You gotta dunk the ball," Odom said. "I trusted my finger roll too much tonight. I should have dunked those ones. That was a bad game. You got to wash that one way and get ready for the next one."

He wasn't the only Laker who should have felt dirty afterward. Derek Fisher made one basket. Pau

Gasol missed 11 of 18 shots. The Lakers had only 13 assists, their lowest total of the regular season.

Not enough offense, period.

Odom was longing for a second game Sunday night. In that respect, he was all by himself. One of these was plenty.