After jumping out to a 3-0 series lead, the Los Angeles Lakers failed to close out the Houston Rockets in Games 4 and 5.
They got another opportunity on Friday night as the series shifted back to Toyota Center for Game 6. While not a must-win, the Lakers obviously wanted to end the series and avoid having to go back to L.A. for a do-or-die Game 7. They were able to do exactly that as the Lakers went up big in the first half and were able to earn a 98-78 victory to end the series.
Considering the Lakers have struggled offensively the last few games, LeBron James was in attack mode early, getting into the paint to set up good looks for himself and his teammates. The Rockets were playing with good energy to start though and jumped out to a 16-11 lead.
After a timeout, Austin Reaves completed a three-point play and then Luke Kennard hit a corner triple, which was great to see given his recent struggles. Jake LaRavia then hit a 3-pointer of his own as the Lakers ripped off a 9-0 run.
A Rockets timeout didn’t stop the run as Rui Hachimura then continued it with another 3. The offense cooled off from there, but the Lakers still led 23-18 at the end of the first quarter.
The Lakers went on another run to begin the second, scoring nine straight points to take their first double-digit lead with James leading the way.
As the Lakers continued pouring it on, the Rockets were ice cold as they didn’t have a field goal for the first five minutes of the second quarter before Reed Sheppard ended the drought with a layup. That ignited a quick 6-0 run by the Rockets and a timeout by L.A.
The Lakers got back on track to end the half as Hachimura and James hit back-to-back triples to take a 49-31 lead into the locker room.
James kept up the intensity to begin the third quarter as Hachimura stayed hot as the Lakers extended the lead to 25.
The Lakers took their foot off the gas from there, however, as the Rockets kept fighting and cut their deficit to 71-55 going into the fourth.
Before the Rockets could build any sort of momentum, Hachimura began the fourth quarter with another 3 and then James hit a midrange jumper. Smart then got the lead back up to 24 with a triple of his own, officially putting the game on ice.
What’s next for the Lakers
Now that they have finally closed out the Rockets, the Lakers have advanced to the second round where they will take on the defending-champion Oklahoma City Thunder. Game 1 will take place on Tuesday night at Paycom Center.
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