The Los Angeles Lakers took on the Houston Rockets Tuesday night. Kent Bazemore joined the list of injured Lakers after being ruled out for the remainder of the season. The Lakers made Jordan Farmar and Steve Nash available for Tuesday’s game. Nash entered the matchup with 13,330 career assists and only needed five to move into third place on the NBA’s all-time assists list. During the second quarter, Nash passed Mark Jackson when he found Jodie Meeks on a fast break. Despite the accomplishment, the Lakers allowed the Rockets to dominate the game and shoot 58 percent from the field. The Lakers would fall 145-130.
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First Quarter
The Lakers allowed the Rockets to score four quick baskets in the paint. Sloppy offense and poor transition defense allowed the Rockets to take an early 14-6 lead forcing a Laker timeout. The Lakers came out of the timeout with Jordan Farmar making his return. Farmar made a quick impact blocking two shots and scoring five points. However, the Lakers would end the quarter down 35-26.
Second Quarter
The Lakers let the triples fall to open the second quarter but still trailed 45-37 four minutes into the quarter. A quick 7-2 Lakers run brought them within three before Chandler Parsons made a layup for the Rockets. A Steve Nash bounce pass to Jodie Meeks cut the Rocket lead to just one and also gave Nash his fourth assist of the night, tying Mark Jackson for third most all-time. Nash found Meeks again two minutes later to move into sole possession of third place. The half came to an end with the Lakers behind 66-61.
Third Quarter
Coming out of the break, the Laker defense couldn’t find a way to stop the Rockets from scoring beyond the arc and saw the deficit grow to 23. A Wesley Johnson triple midway through the quarter ended the drought. Baskets started to fall for the Lakers, but the Lakers still couldn’t find a way to slow down the Rockets. The Lakers allowed the Rockets to score 49 in the third and entered the final quarter trailing 115-90.
Fourth Quarter
The first Laker possession resulted in a turnover as the Rockets continued to pile on the points. The Lakers nearly found themselves down 30 but went on a small run with to cut the Rockets lead to 18. With the game in hand, the Rockets emptied their bench and rode their reserves to finish the night. The Lakers found the deficit too large to overcome and ultimately lost the game by a score of 145-130.
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