Lakers vs. Rockets Game 2 Preview: Can L.A. take control?

The first round series between the Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets continues on Tuesday.

L.A. looks to take further control of the matchup and protect homecourt by going for 2-0.

Start time and TV schedule

Who: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Houston Rockets

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When: 7:30 p.m. PT, Apr. 21

Where: Crypto.com Arena

Watch: NBC, Peacock

Just when it looked like the Lakers needed a miracle to win Game 1, there was a sudden plot twist moments before tip-off that Kevin Durant was ruled out as well. The matchup instantly became more favorable for the purple and gold and, boy, did they make the most out of it in the best way possible.

Shoutout to Luke Kennard for having himself a career night, to LeBron James for taking control of the game with his IQ and the rest of the team for doing what they’ve done for the most part of the season: rise to the occasion.

Game 1 didn’t go perfectly for the Lakers by any means, but they played well enough to earn the victory. Now, the next challenge is to win Game 2, which will be even harder. Durant’s health remains the biggest storyline but with or without the all-time great, Los Angeles will have to be ready for Houston’s response.

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How will Houston respond?

What was ironic about Game 1 was that even as the Rockets won the rebounding battle (44-35) by a substantial margin, scored more points in transition (11-4) and finished with more possessions through second-chance opportunities, they still lost. A huge reason for this is that no one from their team scored more than 20 points and without KD, they lacked offensive firepower.

Expect that to change in Game 2. The likes of Reed Sheppard and Jabari Smith — who shot a combined 11-34 — will definitely want to bounce back. The same goes with Alperen Sengun, who will likely be more aggressive and look for his shots. The Rockets will most likely tighten their defensive coverage on Kennard and will limit James’ playmaking and scoring abilities. This is the perfect opportunity to test how quickly head coach JJ Redick and the Lakers respond to the Rockets’ adjustments.

Can L.A. continue to beat the Rockets on…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/lakers-vs-rockets-game-2-052954201.html

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Publish date : 2026-04-21 05:29:00

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