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It’s April 6, 2012 and the (35-20) Los Angeles Lakers are set for round three against the (29-25) Houston Rockets.
This past Wednesday night, against their Staples Center co-tenants, the Lakers were motivated… up for the challenge and dialed-in against the Clippers. For 48 minutes they played hard, refusing to lose in the battle of L.A.
There is no doubt that a “Lakers vs. Clippers” playoff series would be great for sports fans in the city of Los Angeles. This week’s win provided the Lakers with the tiebreaker over the Clippers they would need in the event that the team’s match-up in the post season all but locked up the Pacific Division and entrenched the Lakers as the number three seed in the Western Conference Playoffs.
The Lakers and Rockets have split the first two games of the season series.
L.A. has taken each of the last three season’s series from Houston and has not lost one to them since the 2007-2008 season. 16-8 all-time against Houston at the Staples Center, L.A. has won 7-3 in the last 10 games overall.
In the second game against the Rockets, without key starters, the Lakers had a fast start and built a 17-point lead. But they could not hold on. The Rockets, down by nine with five minutes left, used a 12-0 run to win 107-104. Los Angeles is 23-5 at home and is riding a four game winning streak. Since March 9th, the Lakers are 12-4, scoring 102.6 points per game, holding opponents to 99.8 points, shooting 47.3 percent from the field and are 36 percent from behind the arc.
L.A. has not lost to Houston at home since November 2009. In order for this to remain the case, the Purple and Gold must step up their effort on the defensive side of the game. The Lakers’ defense has gotten stops when needed, but is there is room for improvement.
Tonight, the impact of Houston’s point guard Goran Drajic, power forward Luis Scola and shooting guard Courtney Lee – who combined to score 62 points the last time to two teams met – must be limited by L.A. The Lakers have to do a solid job defending the pick-and-roll play, stopping the dribble penetration of the guards and controlling the tempo. It is necessary that they get back in transition, defend, out-rebound the Rockets and quickly rotate out to open shooters.
Los Angeles’ offense has improved with the addition of point guard Ramon Sessions and he joined the Lakers’ circle of trust at the end of the Clippers’ game by having the speed to turn the corner and attack the basket. Laker fans have not seen the type of speed Sessions’ possesses from the position since Nick Van Exel donned a #9 purple and gold jersey in 1993. The Lakers need to continue to work hard at improving their ball movement and player movement to find high percentage shots. The y also need to continue to use their long front line to establish a lead and focus on maintaining and increasing said lead.
Starters
Lakers: R. Sessions, K. Bryant, M. Peace, P. Gasol, A. Bynum
Rockets: G. Dragic, C. Lee, C. Parsons, L. Scola, S. Dalembert
Tip-off: 7:30 PM PST
Television –
- Los Angeles: Prime Ticket (Bill Macdonald & Stu Lantz)
- Houston: FS Houston (Bill Worrell & Clyde Drexler)
Radio –
- Los Angeles: 710 ESPN (John Ireland & Mychal Thompson)
- Houston: 610 AM (Craig Ackerman)
Injuries –
Lakers:
- Andrew Bynum (Sprained Left Ankle) Probable
- Jordan Hill (Sprained MCL, Right Knee) Questionable
Rockets:
- Kyle Lowry (Bacterial Infection) Out
- Kevin Martin (Strained Right Shoulder)
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