(My Sportsbook) - The reeling Utah Jazz hope to stave off elimination in Hollywood tonight when they resume their Western Conference quarterfinals series against the heavily-favored Los Angeles Lakers.

It won't be easy.

Utah has already dropped the first two games of this series in LA and have lost 11 straight games at Staples Center. The Jazz were also just 15-26 away from Salt Lake City in the regular season this year, beating only one team with a winning record, the New Orleans Hornets.

Kobe Bryant quickly put one of his worst playoff performances in the rearview mirror on Saturday in Utah, hitting 16-of-24 from the field for 38 points to lead a balanced Lakers club to a 108-94 drubbing of the Jazz in Game 4 of the set.

In Game 3's 88-86 setback, Bryant sank a woeful 5-of-24 for 18 points, but the reigning MVP showed his full arsenal on Saturday to pace Los Angeles to a 3-1 lead in the series.

"Kobe Bryant was spectacular," Jazz head coach Jerry Sloan said. "We never could get close enough to guard him, really. He just shot through us, over us, whatever he took; he was very difficult for us to play. I think he put everyone on his back and got them off to the way they wanted to play. "

Six other Lakers had at least nine points in the lopsided affair, with Lamar Odom logging 10 points and 15 rebounds and Pau Gasol adding 13 and 10 for the victors, who shot 51.9 percent from the field.

Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer carried Utah. Williams played nearly 46 minutes, depositing 23 points and 13 assists, and Boozer scored 23 points to go with a game-high 16 rebounds.

The Jazz welcomed back Mehmet Okur, but their second leading scorer logged just 13 minutes and went 0-for-3 from the floor. The center missed the first three games of the series with a strained right hamstring.

Utah will hope to get more productive minutes out of Okur tonight while the Lakers are a little banged up heading into the contest. LA forwards Trevor Ariza and Luke Walton both have sprained ankles. Ariza is expected to play, however, while Walton will be a game-time decision.

This marks the second straight season these two teams have met in the playoffs. The Lakers defeated the Jazz in six games in the Western semis last year.

Overall, these two teams have played each other four different times in the postseason with each taking two sets. LA won in 1988 and 2008 while Utah got the best of the Lakers in both 1997 and 1998.

Game 6 of the series, if necessary, will be in Salt Lake City on Thursday.