Lakers at Rockets: The Start of a Six-Game Road Stretch

WHERE TO WATCH AND WHAT TIME

Date: Monday, March 16 

Tip-off: 6:30 p.m. 

Location: Toyota Center — Houston, Texas 

TV: Peacock, NBA Sports, Spectrum SportsNet 

Radio: ESPN LA 710 / 1330 KWKW

GAME PREVIEW

The Lakers are rolling with momentum entering Monday’s matchup against the Houston Rockets, looking to push their win streak to six games

Los Angeles is coming off the NBA’s best game of the year, which had rollercoaster moments in their win over the Nuggets on Saturday, where Luka Dončić hit a game-winning jumper in overtime.

The Lakers got to overtime after a heads-up play by Austin Reaves, tying the game after intentionally throwing it off the rim to get him a clean look to send it to OT.

Doncic had his second straight triple-double, finishing with 30 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists. Reaves led all scorers with 32 points (seven rebounds, six assists)

Doncic continues to lead the charge offensively, averaging 32.8 points per game, which still leads the NBA.

The Lakers are on an important six-game road stretch, starting with two games in the next three days against the Rockets.

Tonight’s matchup marks the second meeting between the teams this season.

WHY THIS GAME MATTERS

With 14 games left in the regular season, the Lakers are currently No. 3 in the Western Conference standings.

A loss tonight against the Rockets would push them back to No. 4 and Houston back to No. 3. Only two games separate the No. 3 from the No. 6 seeds, which makes every game in the final regular season a must-win.

The Lakers have won eight of their last nine games with the second-rated offense (122.5) and sixth-rated defense (110.1) in that span. 

OPPONENT OUTLOOK

The Rockets enter tonight’s game with a 41-25 record and currently sit No. 4 in the Western Conference.

They are coming off a weekend rest after a two-point win over the Pelicans on Friday.

A Kevin Durant-smothered jumper over Herb Jones gave the Rockets a one-point lead with 7.6 seconds left. Durant finished with a team-high 32 points.

In year 18, Durant leads the Rockets in scoring at 26 points per game while starting center Alperen Şengün leads the team with 6.1 assists. 

Şengün comes into this contest questionable after missing the previous two games. He is second on the team in scoring at 20.2 per contest.

NOTABLE OPPONENT RANKS AMONG THE NBA

The Rockets currently rank:

10th (116.4) in offensive rating

8th (112.2) in defensive rating

Other rankings:

PTS — 21st (114.1) 

FG% — 10th (47.4%)

3P% — 7th (36.4%)

REBS— 1st (15.2)

BLKS — 2nd (5.9) 

WHAT TO AVOID

The Lakers need to avoid losing a big lead.

Against the Nuggets, the Lakers surrendered a 17-point lead to Denver behind a bad third-quarter loss where they were outscored 37-26.

L.A. must keep its foot on the gas against a good team in Houston if they have a sizable lead.

STAT TO WATCH

LeBron James (1608 games) is currently three games away from tying Robert Parish (1611 games) for the most games played in NBA history and four games from breaking it. 

SEASON SERIES

Game 1 — Lakers 119-96 loss vs. Houston on Dec. 25

INJURY REPORT

Lakers:

• Maxi Kleber (back strain): Out

Rockets:

• Jae’Sean Tate (knee): Out

• Alperen Sengun (back): Questionable

• Steven Adams (left ankle surgery): Out for season

• Fred VanVleet (torn ACL): Out for season

THREADS FOR THE GAME

The Lakers will wear their gold uniforms, while the Rockets will wear their red Icon Edition uniforms.

NEXT MATCHUP

After their two road games in Houston, the Lakers play the next four on the road against Miami, Orlando, Detroit and then finally Indiana to end the six-game road trip.