Lakers blow out ice-cold Rockets 98-78 to win series, advance to face Thunder
LeBron James dominated the game and finished with 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists.
There was no history made in Houston on Friday night. In fact, it was a night Rockets fans would like to forget entirely. The Lakers came out aggressive and focused from the opening tip, while Houston didn't match that energy.
At the same time, its offense went ice-cold at the worst possible time ā Los Angeles packed the paint defensively and the Rockets shot 2-of-11 from 3-point range and a disturbing 29. 3% overall in the first half, scoring just 31 points. Think of it this way: LeBron James outscored the Houston Rockets by himself, 14-13, in the second quarter.
It didn't get much better in the third quarter, with the Rockets shooting 1-of-6 from 3 and 33. 3% from the floor in the frame. While the Lakers were not exactly lighting up the scoreboard, they had LeBron James, who had 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, and he dominated the game.
LeBron put on a show to close out the Rockets 28 points 7 rebounds 8 assists pic. twitter. com/C5inSzEeG8 ā NBA on Prime (@NBAonPrime) May 2, 2026 Los Angeles cruised to a 98-78 win to take the series 4-2, ending talk of the Rockets becoming the first team to come back from 0-3 down to take a series.