The Los Angeles Lakers remain in top form and extend their winning streak. Led by Luka Doncic and LeBron James, they decide an intense duel with the Houston Rockets in their favor late on.
The Los Angeles Lakers celebrated their seventh win in a row with a 124:116 victory at the Houston Rockets and have won ten of their last eleven games. In a game that was open for a long time, the visitors only pulled away decisively in the final spell – once again buoyed by their superstar duo.
Luka Doncic excelled with 40 points, ten assists and nine rebounds, narrowly missing out on a triple-double. LeBron James also put in an outstanding performance: 30 points on an outstanding 13 out of 14 shots from the field and five rebounds. With his 12,002nd rebound, the veteran also broke the 12,000 mark and reached another milestone in his career.
Decision comes late: Doncic makes the difference
The game remained close right into crunch time. After the Rockets had taken the lead at one stage (105:102), the Lakers struck back with back-to-back threes by Rui Hachimura and Doncic. In the final minutes, an alley-oop from Doncic to James and another three by the Slovenian made the final decision.
Houston held out for a long time, led by Alperen Sengün, who added 27 points and ten assists on his comeback. Amen Thompson also impressed with 26 points and 11 rebounds. Kevin Durant, on the other hand, remained inconspicuous for a long time and only scored 18 points late on. In the end, however, the Rockets lacked the consistency to stop the Lakers’ streak.