Lakers set a franchise record for points in the paint in tonight’s win over the Rockets.
In the last home game of the regular season, the Lakers unveiled their 17th championship banner in the rafters that was halted all season just for the return of fans. The Lakers were able to come out on top tonight in a short-handed matchup against the Houston Rockets, outlasting a 4th quarter surge from the Rockets, beating Houston 124–122. Tonight’s win gave the Lakers their third straight victory and 40th win of the season, moving the season record to 40–30, as they still remain in 7th place in the Western Conference.
The Lakers had a collective effort in the finals seconds of tonight’s win, with a game-winning lay-up from Kyle Kuzma, then a game-sealing steal on Rockets Kelly Olynyk by Wesley Matthews. Despite having a number of significant players out of the lineup, the Lakers were able to set a franchise record for points in the paint, scoring 86 points in tonight’s win. The Lakers finished with their 3rd best field goal percentage of the season, shooting 57.1% overall, going 52 for 91 total from the field.
Coming off the biggest games of his career, hitting a game-winning three over his childhood hero Derrick Rose in yesterday’s win over the Knicks, Talen Horton-Tucker followed up his huge night with another big performance for the Lakers in tonight’s win. In 36 minutes of action, Horton-Tucker finished with a team-high 23 points on 9 for 16 (56.2%) shooting from the field, including 10 assists, 2 rebounds, and 2 steals in tonight’s victory. Head coach Frank Vogel spoke highly on the production of the 21-year-old saying:
“Talen is doing a great job for us, let’s highlight the positive. He’s carrying a big load, being asked to basically run the whole team, with all our point guards and quarterbacks out. He’s done a phenomenal job helping us these last two games.”
After finishing with a strong paint performance in yesterday’s win over the Knicks, Andre Drummond continued his dominance in the paint in tonight’s win over Houston. Drummond finished another double-double in tonight’s effort, giving him his 8th double-double in a Laker uniform. In 21 minutes tonight, Drummond finished second on the Lakers in scoring with 20 points and 10 rebounds on 9 for 13 (69.2%) shooting from the field. Head coach Frank Vogel gave his input on what he’s seen from Drummond as of late:
“Dre has been great, I’ve been challenging him to be great on both sides of the ball, protecting the rim and finishing around the basket. He had another strong performance, the second night in a row.”
Kyle Kuzma continued his strong performance from yesterday’s 23 point outing into tonight’s win over the Rockets, giving the Lakers the play of the night, scoring a game-winning lay-up with 4 seconds. In 32 minutes of action, Kuzma finished with 19 points on 8 of 12 (66.6%) shooting from the field, including 10 rebounds and 7 assists nearing achieving a triple-double in tonight’s win. Kuzma had some very interesting insight on the misconception of him as a player and a person, expressing his growth as a player:
“There’s this misconception about me as a person, that I don’t care about basketball, (because of) how I dress, but if you really watch basketball and see from my rookie year to where I am now, I’ve really grown as a player.”
After only playing 4 minutes in yesterday’s win, Montrezl Harrell was called upon tonight to match up to the Rockets small lineup, playing 26 minutes. Off the bench, Harrell finished with 16 points on 8 of 14 (57.1%) total from the field.
It was reported on Monday that LeBron James would look to make his return from injury in tonight’s matchup against Houston, that report was shut down today, as it looks James with make his possible return in one of the Lakers last two remaining games of the regular season against either the Pacers or Pelicans, who the Lakers are set to face this Saturday and Sunday. These last two games are must-win games for the Lakers, with still a slight chance of avoiding the play-in tournament as they are one game behind the Trail Blazers and Mavericks.