Lakers’ ruthless 27-3 surge buries Rockets 98-78 in Game 6, sets up Thunder series

TL;DR

The Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Houston Rockets 98-78 in Game 6, eliminating them from the playoffs. LeBron James scored 28 points, leading the Lakers to a second-round matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Key points

Lakers eliminated Rockets in Game 6
LeBron James scored 28 points
Lakers advance to face Thunder in second round
Rockets struggled with shooting, making only 35%
Lakers used a 27-3 run to secure the win

Los Angeles LakersHouston RocketsNBA PlayoffsOklahoma City Thunder

HOUSTON (AP) — LeBron James had 28 points and the Los Angeles Lakers eliminated Houston with a 98-78 win in Game 6 of their Western Conference first-round playoff series on Friday night by holding the Rockets to a season low in points. The No. 4 seed Lakers move on to meet the top-seeded Thunder with Game 1 Tuesday in Oklahoma City. Los Angeles has advanced to the second round for the first time since 2023 when it lost to Denver in the West finals despite missing top scorer Luka Doncic for the entire series. The Lakers used a 27-3 run in the first half to take an 18-point lead at halftime. They led by 22 with about three minutes left in the third quarter before Houston went on an 8-2 run to cut the lead to 71-55 entering the fourth. But Los Angeles opened the quarter with a 10-3 spurt, with five points from Rui Hachimura, to make it 81-58 with about seven minutes left. Hachimura added 21 points with five 3-pointers. Amen Thompson had 18 points and Alperen Sengun added 17 for Houston, which is heading home after a first-round playoff loss for a second straight season after losing to the Warriors in seven games last year. The fifth-seeded Rockets had won two straight after falling into an 0-3 hole. They forced Game 6 despite missing superstar for all but one game of this series because of a knee injury followed by an ankle issue. But they were felled by poor shooting Friday, making just 35% overall and were particularly bad from long range. After making 26 3-pointers combined in the last two games, the Rockets made just 5 of 28 3-pointers Friday with going 1 for 10. The Lakers trailed by 5 with five minutes left in the first before using a 27-3 run to take a 38-19 lead with about seven minutes left in the second quarter. Hachimura, and James all made 3-pointers in that stretch to help Los Angeles build the lead on a night the Lakers made 12 3s. The Rockets couldn’t get anything going early in the second quarter. They got one free throw from Sheppard but missed 11 shots before he made the team’s first field goal in the period with 6:55 left before halftime. That didn't spark anything for Houston and the Lakers led 48-31 at halftime. added 15 points for the Lakers in his second game back after missing more than three weeks with an oblique injury and had seven points and 16 rebounds. \\_ AP NBA:

Q&A

What was the score of the Lakers vs Rockets Game 6?

The Lakers won Game 6 against the Rockets with a score of 98-78.

Who led the Lakers in scoring during the playoff game against the Rockets?

LeBron James led the Lakers with 28 points in their playoff victory over the Rockets.

When do the Lakers play the Thunder in the next playoff round?

The Lakers will face the Thunder in Game 1 on Tuesday.