Rockets survive without Kevin Durant, dominate Lakers in Game 4 after Deandre Ayton's ejection to avoid sweep

Ayton was trying to stop Alperen Sengun from driving to the rim when his left elbow came up high and drilled Sengun right in his jaw. Sengun recoiled immediately, clearly shaken up by the hit.

Officials reviewed the incident and quickly determined that Ayton’s elbow was “unnecessary and excessive.” While it didn’t appear to be intentional by any means, Ayton was assessed a flagrant 2 foul and was thrown out of the game. He finished the night with 19 points and 10 rebounds.

The Rockets were up by 19 points at the time. They ended up outscoring the Lakers 34-18 in the third period alone and took a 25-point lead into the fourth quarter. By that point, the Lakers were just about out of it. Houston powered through the rest of the way to grab the 19-point win easily.

Aaron Holiday and Adou Thiero got into a very small scuffle under the rim with a little more than a minute left too, which earned them both quick ejections. Officials, however, got the dustup settled without much issue. The two teams met for a third scuffle after the final buzzer sounded, too, though not much came of it.

Amen Thompson led the Rockets with 23 points and seven assists after he went 10-of-16 from the field. Tari Eason added 20 points and eight rebounds, and Sengun finished with 19 points.

The Rockets were without Durant on Sunday night. He was ruled out of the game earlier in the day with a bone bruise in his sprained left ankle, which marked his third missed game of the series. He missed Game 3 due to the ankle injury, and he missed the opening game due to a knee injury. His status in Game 5 is still absolutely in doubt.

Rui Hachimura added 13 points to go with Ayton’s 19 for the Lakers. LeBron James had 10 points and nine assists, but also had eight of the Lakers’ 23 turnovers. They went just 5-of-20 from behind the arc, too, which marked their fewest made 3-pointers in a single game all season.

The Lakers also ruled out Austin Reaves due to an oblique strain. He’s missed the entire series so far, but has reportedly been close to making a return and was considered questionable entering Sunday’s contest. Luka Dončić is still out, too.

Reaves’ presence on Wednesday night in Game 5 would undoubtedly provide a significant boost for the Lakers as they attempt to close the Rockets out. While the Lakers are still in a great position to make it out of the first round of the playoffs for the first time since 2023, it’s going to take at least one more night to officially pull that off.