Before Monday's game in Houston, JJ Redick said he thought it would be a rock fight, and he wasn't wrong. 

But the Lakers once again used strong defense and a great late-game run to beat the Rockets, 100-92. Aside from a neat and efficient 36 point effort from Luka Dončić (14-27 shooting), the Lakers struggled to find points. LeBron James finished with 18 points (7-13 shooting) and Austin Reaves had 15... but needed 18 attempts to get there. (He missed all eight three pointers he tried.) 

But there were still a bunch of different ways guys contributed, from an excellent final five minutes from Deandre Ayton to five free throws from Jake LaRavia, and a critical 3-pointer from Marcus Smart down the stretch. And everyone kicked in defensively, as the Lakers put a lot of pressure on Kevin Durant to get the ball from his hands. 

With the win, the Lakers gain sole possession of third place in the West, and have a chance to clinch the tiebreaker over the Rockets in Wednesday's season series rubber match.

 

HOSTS: Andy and Brian Kamenetzky

 

SEGMENT 1: A huge, Luka 'n' D driven win over Houston.

 

SEGMENT 2: Finding new ways to get it done. 

 

SEGMENT 3: Best defensive showing of the year? 

 

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