On a night when Houston’s stars, James Harden and Dwight Howard, shot just 10-of-34, the Lakers were unable to take advantage of the Rockets’ fizzling shooting.
In fact, the visitors shot just 38.6 percent from the field, but they were simply more efficient than L.A., as Houston (13-14) held significant advantages in offensive rebounds (23-13), 3-pointers (12-5) and free throws (27-10).
Though Kobe Bryant scored 22 points on a 9-of-16 clip, his fellow Lakers were unable to keep up with a Rockets team that led by as many as 20 in its wire-to-wire victory.
Despite missing 17 of his 24 shots, Harden nonetheless dropped 25 points by shooting 9-of-10 at the line. Likewise, Howard went just 3-of-10 from the field, but hit 10-of-18 from the line, as the Lakers (4-22) fruitlessly tried to hack him late in the game.
Howard made a bigger dent on the glass than the scoreboard, racking up 15 rebounds, while Clint Capela added a dozen more.
The young fellas couldn’t wait to greet the Mamba after that Vino outburst! Kobe Bryant #NBAVOTE pic.twitter.com/LHUIti1zOp
Flight of the Mamba It’s been 19 years since Bryant won the Slam Dunk Contest, but it sure didn’t seem that far away early in the third quarter.
Capela finished with four blocks, but he was unable to deter Bryant from throwing down his first dunk of the year. The 37-year-old future Hall of Famer rose above the 6-foot-9 Rocket and buried the ball into the hoop.
Notes Bryant missed four consecutive free throws in a single game for the first time since since March 2, 2008 against Dallas. … D’Angelo Russell did not hit a shot until there was 2:44 left in the game, though he did tie his career-high with seven assists. … Julius Randle (18 points, 10 rebounds) notched his 12th double-double of the year. The sophomore also hit his first career 3-pointer. … Houston’s entire starting lineup scored in double figures, plus Terrence Jones (16 points) off the bench.
Kobe Bryant #NBAVOTE
A photo posted by Los Angeles Lakers (@lakers) on Dec 17, 2015 at 9:16pm PST
