Lakers vs. Rockets: Highlights, Top Tweets, Grades and Analysis
The undermanned Houston Rockets (25-22) defended their home court and took down the Lakers (28-18) by a score of 107-104.
The Lakers have struggled on the road all year, but entered this game having won three in a row away from home. This loss was especially troubling given that Houston was playing this game without two of their primary players in SG Kevin Martin and PG Kyle Lowry.
The Rockets had lost two straight and won just three of their last 10 coming into this game. The Lakers had a late lead tonight and let it slip away for the disheartening loss.
Tweets of the Night
KnicksWithTheKnack is pointing the finger straight at Kobe Bryant for their late collapse.
"Lakers Are Just Collapsing & It's All On Kobes Shoulders, No Excuse 4 Shooting Fade Aways While Double Teamed, Your Teamates Were Doing Fine
— KnicksWithTheKnack (@ThaBlogBully) March 21, 2012"
B Smoov noticed something that could easily become a trend and lead to a starting-lineup change.
"The Lakers stopped scoring when they took out Sessions and put in Blake. #imjustsayin
— B Smoov (@BSmoov1911) March 21, 2012"
Making this loss even harder to swallow for the Lakers is the fact that they got off to their best start of the year. ESPN LA's Dave McMenamin put the Lakers' tremendous first quarter into perspective.
"The Lakers open up the first quarter on fire, up 40-25 on Houston. The only had 44 pts in the first HALF on Sunday.
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) March 21, 2012"
Must-See Highlight of the Night
In the tweets above, it was highlighted that Steve Blake's entrance killed the Lakers' offense. So you might be saying to yourself, "Yeah, but Sessions is terrible on defense, and defense is just as important as offense."
Well, things weren't looking so good on defense for Blake, either.
Grades for Key Lakers Players
Kobe Bryant: B-
Kobe started this game on fire, but cooled off considerably. He missed numerous shots down the stretch, as the Lakers let their late lead slip.
He scored 29 points, but took 27 shots to get them.
Pau Gasol: B+
Gasol was outstanding tonight. He was active and efficient. He had 21 points on 10-of-14 shooting
The only knock is that he didn't come away with more than four boards.
Andrew Bynum: C+
Bynum was having a solid night. He had 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting with seven boards. Then, in the third quarter, he got into a jawing match with the ref and received his second technical foul and was ejected.
Grades for Key Rockets Players
Courtney Lee: A-
With Lowry and Martin out, Lee really stepped up his production. He had 23 points going 7-of-17 from the field and 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. He also had five rebounds, four assists and two steals.
Luis Scola: A-
Scola was outstanding tonight. He was creating good looks for himself and converting them. He had 23 points on 9-of-13 shooting.
Chase Budinger: C-
After a hot start, Budinger cooled off considerably and was hardly a factor in the second half. He finished with just eight points on an inefficient 2-of-7 shooting.
Stat of the Night: +16
Since we've been talking about Sessions outperforming Blake, I thought it was worth pointing out Sessions' plus-minus number for the night.
The plus-16 was easily the highest on the Lakers and 20 points better than Blake's minus-4.
Game MVP: Goran Dragic
Dragic was outstanding filling in for the injured Lowry. He set the table for the Rockets all night and was efficient with his own shot.
He had 16 points, going 7-of-13 from the field, and 13 assists. The small guard also grabbed seven rebounds.
What's Next
The Rockets will take a day off and then host the Golden State Warriors on Thursday for the second game in a four-game home stand.
The Lakers will quickly trek across Texas to play the Mavericks in Dallas to complete their short two-game road trip.
