Los Angeles Lakers beat Houston Rockets 112-108 on the road on Friday, April 24 in overtime.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Lakers had the better start, winning the first 39-32 to lead by 7 after one. The Lakers kept the pressure on with a 24-20 second quarter, carrying a 11-point lead into halftime.
The Rockets won the third 23-17 to stay in front, taking a 5-point lead into the fourth. The Rockets answered with a 26-21 fourth quarter, forcing overtime at 101.
The Lakers finally separated the teams in overtime, winning it 11-7 to close out a 112-108 victory.
What decided it
The Lakers made 30.4 free throws per 100 field-goal attempts, compared with 17.3 for the Rockets. The Lakers got more from their shots, finishing at 55.7% effective field-goal shooting compared with 46.4% for the Rockets. In a 4-point game, the points at the line gave them room for error elsewhere.
The Rockets did win one battle, second chances: ORB% of 33.3% against 22.5%. The Lakers made up for it elsewhere.
At roughly 105 possessions per team, the Lakers produced 107.1 points per 100 possessions to 103.3 for the Rockets.
The Lakers' reserves also made a difference, outscoring the opposing bench 24-3.
Who stepped up
Alperen Sengun was the game's biggest individual force for HOU: 33 pts, 16 reb, 6 ast, 3 stl on 15-27 shooting. His Game Score of 30.6 led everyone. His team was +10 with him on the floor.
Marcus Smart led the Lakers with 21 pts, 4 reb, 10 ast, 5 stl on 5-9 shooting, good for a 27.1 Game Score.
Alperen Sengun (33 pts, 16 reb, 6 ast), Amen Thompson (26 pts, 11 reb, 4 ast), and LeBron James (29 pts, 13 reb, 6 ast) each recorded a double-double.
What it means
The pre-game Win Meter had it close to a coin flip, at about 38% for the Lakers.
Across the last 8 meetings in our records, Los Angeles Lakers lead 6-2.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.