The Los Angeles Lakers escaped with a two-point victory, 119-117, over a gutsy Houston Rockets squad on Tuesday night at Staples Center.
Both teams started the contest with guns ablaze, finishing the first half with a combined 134 points. The game went down to the final miss by Kevin Porter Jr., but it did not come without controversy after two points were taken away from the Lakers because the game officials failed to count the Rockets' fouls correctly.
Here's the bizarre decision late in the Lakers-Rockets game that led to the officials taking two points off the Lakers score pic.twitter.com/1zkak5Cglg
— Jacob Rude (@JacobRude) November 3, 2021
One aspect of the Lakers' victory that may be overshadowed by the referees' blunder is the way LeBron James and Co. pummeled their opponents inside the shaded area.
Per Lakers PR, the Lakers' 78 points in the paint tonight are the most scored by any team this season.
— Daniel Starkand (@DStarkand) November 3, 2021
This stat is consistent with how the Lakers have been feasting in the early part of the season. In fact, they rank number five in the entire league when it comes to “Percent of Points (Points in the Paint),” making full use of their big men as well as James and Russell Westbrook's propensity to score underneath the basket.
The Rockets were without Daniel Theis, leaving all 214 pounds of Christian Wood and rookie Alperen Sengun on their own against the Lakers' trees. Surprisingly, the Rockets still gave Los Angeles some serious scare, controlling most of the game until the veteran-laded group took control in the fourth quarter.
James led the scoring barrage for the Lakers, finishing with 30 points on 13-of-21 shooting. He received ample support from Anthony Davis (27), Westbrook (27), and Carmelo Anthony (15). The Lakers have now won three straight, placing them at the third spot in the Western Conference standings.
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