The Lakers survived an ugly, ugly fourth quarter of basketball to come away with a sixth straight win, knocking off the Rockets on the road, 100-92.
An absolute rock fight broke out between the two teams in the fourth as they combined for just 12 points in the first eight minutes of the period. The Lakers eventually found offense, opening up a multiple-possession lead that proved enough.
In the end, some big baskets from Deandre Ayton and a strong defensive showing in the fourth proved enough to come away with yet another big win against a fellow playoff contender.
The game began with Clint Capela splitting a pair of free throws. LeBron James and Luka Dončić were leading the Lakers early with four and nine points, respectively. Jabari Smith Jr. started well for Houston with four points.
Both teams were shooting 60% from the field. The Rockets missed two 3-pointers, while LA made one.
Los Angeles went on a run that put them ahead by two at the 6:40 mark. Luka entered double figures with 14 points.
Kevin Durant started cooking with eight points. Rui Hachimura provided a nice spark off the bench with four points. At the 2:16 mark, the Lakers were up by three. The purple and gold allowed Reed Sheppard to score a fast five points, cutting the lead to just one for LA.
Austin Reaves opened the second period with a layup for Los Angeles. Smith Jr. responded on the other end with a triple. Reaves converted on another layup, giving him six points. After Jake LaRavia scored on a layup, Houston called a timeout.
Out of the break, Dorian Finney-Smith drained a 3-pointer.
In the battle of the bigs, Capela was winning so far with six points and three rebounds. Deandre Ayton had zero points with three rebounds and a steal. LaRavia and Reaves were both fouled a few times, converting on six free throws combined.
At the 7:25 mark, LA was up by four.
Houston jumped ahead after scoring four in a row. The Lakers retook the lead after Luka converted on a midrange jumper. Both teams started going back and forth, taking the lead. The Rockets were up by three with 2:45 left in the half.
At halftime, the Lakers were down by six.
Amen Thompson started the third period with a layup for Houston. Smart responded on the other end with a layup himself, pushing his point total to eight. The Rockets were shooting 60% in the quarter, while LA was shooting 44%. LeBron had five of Los Angeles’ 10 in the quarter.
Luka began heating up, scoring a quick five points.
Over a two-minute span, the Lakers put together an 11-2 scoring run that gave them a one-point lead. The run had expanded to 23-7 until Houston surged for four in a row to stop some of the bleeding.
Heading into the fourth, Los Angeles was up by three.
The final frame started with both teams turning the ball over. LeBron then dunked on the other end off an assist from Reaves. Houston responded to make it a two-point game. LA started missing their shots, but their aggressive defense kept them in the lead and forced 20 turnovers for the Rockets.
Houston tied the game at the 6:52 mark.
The 23-5 margin in second-chance points was hurting the Lakers. The Rockets were on an 8-0 run. LeBron converted on free throws to cut the deficit to one for Los Angeles. Reaves had 15 points, but was a brutal 0-7 from behind the arc.
Durant picked up his sixth turnover.
After a rough seven-minute scoring drought for the Lakers, Ayton scored on a layup that was deemed a goaltend by Tari Eason. Luka then converted on a jumper to give LA a three-point lead.
With 2:14 left, Los Angeles was nursing a one-point lead.
Smart knocked down a big-time triple to put LA up by four. Ayton then ignited for two clutch buckets, pushing Los Angeles’ lead to eight with 43 seconds left. Reaves stole the ball and threw an assist to LeBron for a dunk that sealed the win.
Luka finished with 36 points, six rebounds and four assists. LeBron ended with 18 points, five rebounds and five assists. Reaves scored 15 points with three rebounds, five assists and four steals.
Smart notched 11 points. LaRavia pitched in with seven points and three steals. Hachimura had six points with three rebounds.
The Lakers’ next matchup will be against the Houston Rockets on Wednesday at 6:30 PM PT.
You can follow Karin on Twitter at @KarinAbcarians.
