
Neville: Man Utd-Liverpool huge for Carrick and Slot, neither can afford to lose
Man Utd's clash with Liverpool is vital for managers Carrick and Slot.

The Los Angeles Lakers aim to clinch the series against the Houston Rockets in Game 6 of the Western Conference first round. The Lakers currently lead the series 3-2 and the game is scheduled for Friday at 9:30 p.m. EDT.

Los Angeles Lakers (53-29, fourth in the Western Conference) vs. Houston Rockets (52-30, fifth in the Western Conference)
Houston; Friday, 9:30 p.m. EDT
LINE: Rockets -3.5; over/under is 206.5
WESTERN CONFERENCE FIRST ROUND: Lakers lead series 3-2
BOTTOM LINE: The Los Angeles Lakers look to clinch the series over the Houston Rockets in game six of the Western Conference first round. The Rockets defeated the Lakers 99-93 in the last matchup on Thursday. Jabari Smith Jr. led the Rockets with 22 points, and LeBron James led the Lakers with 25.
The Rockets are 29-23 in Western Conference games. Houston is the Western Conference leader with 48.1 rebounds per game led by Alperen Sengun averaging 8.9.
The Lakers have gone 33-19 against Western Conference opponents. Los Angeles is 8-3 in games decided by 3 points or fewer.
The Rockets are shooting 47.9% from the field this season, 0.4 percentage points lower than the 48.3% the Lakers allow to opponents. The Lakers are shooting 50.2% from the field, 4.2% higher than the 46.0% the Rockets' opponents have shot this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Sengun is averaging 20.4 points, 8.9 rebounds and 6.2 assists for the Rockets. Amen Thompson is averaging 19.7 points over the last 10 games.
James is scoring 20.9 points per game and averaging 6.1 rebounds for the Lakers. Rui Hachimura is averaging 2.3 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
The Los Angeles Lakers lead the series against the Houston Rockets 3-2.
Game 6 is scheduled for Friday at 9:30 p.m. EDT.
The betting line has the Houston Rockets favored by 3.5 points, with an over/under of 206.5.

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LAST 10 GAMES: Rockets: 6-4, averaging 112.7 points, 45.3 rebounds, 24.1 assists, 10.1 steals and 5.0 blocks per game while shooting 46.1% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 106.9 points per game.
Lakers: 6-4, averaging 107.5 points, 39.9 rebounds, 28.3 assists, 9.7 steals and 4.7 blocks per game while shooting 51.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 105.4 points.
INJURIES: Rockets: Fred VanVleet: out for season (acl), Steven Adams: out for season (ankle), Kevin Durant: out (ankle).
Lakers: Luka Doncic: out (hamstring).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.