The Rockets had their best player back in the lineup against the Lakers on Tuesday night after he sat out of Saturday’s Game 1.
But even with Kevin Durant available and having a hot start, Game 2 played out similarly to the playoffs series-opener, with the Lakers beating the Rockets 101-94 at Crypto.com Arena to take a two-game lead in the best-of-seven first round series.
Durant led the Rockets with 23 points, six rebounds and four assists after missing the first game of the series because of a right knee contusion.
But the Lakers once again stifled the Rockets’ offense.
And they were able to get just enough offense out of their own team, which remained without injured star guards Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves, to pick up a pivotal victory before going on the road for the next two games of the series.
LeBron James scored a team-high 28 points to go with eight rebounds and seven assists. Luke Kennard had 23 points and six rebounds, while Marcus Smart stuffed the stat sheet with 25 points, seven assists and five steals.
The Lakers have a 2-0 series lead over the Rockets, the first time they’ve done so since winning the 2020 NBA Finals against the Heat.
Since the NBA moved to a 16-team playoff format in 1984, teams that go up 2-0 in a series under the 2-2-1-1-1 home/away pattern have a 245-23 record (91.4% winning percentage of the series).
When Smart knocked down a corner 3 to give the Lakers a 95-87 lead with 2:23 left in the game.
The shot was not only Smart’s fifth 3-pointer, but gave the Lakers breathing room late.
Smart also picked up a crucial steal against Durant, who had nine turnovers, before assisting James on a dunk to give the Lakers a 99-92 lead.
Smart made five of the Lakers’ 13 3s.
He made big plays on both ends of the floor throughout Tuesday.
That’s how many more 3-pointers the Lakers made compared to the Rockets, who once again struggled offensively.
The Rockets shot 7 of 29 from beyond the arc (24.1%) compared to the Lakers’ 13 of 28 shooting on 3s (46.4%).
The Lakers-Rockets series will move to Houston for the next two games, with Game 3 taking place on Friday at Toyota Center.
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