O'Neal scored just 17 points Friday night -- four in the fourth quarter -- as the Blazers built up another big lead in the final period and held on for a 103-93 victory in Game 6.

Portland, which won a conference final game at home for the first time since May 1992 against Utah, will try to pull off an improbable comeback from a 3-1 deficit on Sunday in Game 7.

Kobe Bryant hit four 3-pointers in the final three minutes, but with O'Neal hardly a factor, the Lakers had no hope of rallying from an eight-point deficit to start the fourth quarter.

O'Neal took just one shot in the final period -- a 4-foot hook shot that pulled the Lakers to 77-68 with 9:31 left. He was 2-for-2 from the line, but wasn't a part of the Lakers' offense at all in the last 5:25.

It was similar to Game 5, when the Blazers began the fourth with an 80-67 lead and didn't let up.

The Lakers, who let the Sacramento Kings and Phoenix Suns off the hook before eliminating them in previous rounds, clearly were annoyed at their inability to put the Blazers away.

With 36.6 seconds left, Los Angeles' Rick Fox and Blazers coach Mike Dunleavy got into a profanity-filled argument, resulting in a technical foul on each man. Steve Smith and Fox then exchanged words. Meanwhile, Scottie Pippen, angry that Fox had hit his sore shoulder earlier, urged the crowd on by waving his arms.

O'Neal made just three of 10 free throws, but the rest of the Lakers couldn't hit either. Bryant and Brian Shaw each missed two in the fourth.

O'Neal didn't react well to Pippen double-teaming him during the game, but he missed some easy shots in the second half. He missed his first five shots in the third quarter, all from close range, and finished the period with just five points.

During that time, the Lakers actually had a chance to rally. Glen Rice's 3-pointer pulled them to 51-47 with 9:10 left in the third, but Smith converted a layup, and the Blazers weren't threatened again.