November 10th, 2008 
Stephen Rhodes 
Posted in 
I am not certain what happened to the Houston Rockets in Sunday night’s game against the Los Angeles Lakers, but one thing is for certain – when you’re Houston and you only shoot 37.8% from the floor and make only 13-of-19 from the free throw line, chances are that you will not win too many games in the NBA. Los Angeles validated that point as they had a big fourth quarter as they went on to destroy Houston 111-82 at Staples Center. The win put the Lakers as one of only two teams – Atlanta being the other team – to remain undefeated.
Rockets guard Rafer Alston scored seven points and center Yao Ming added 6 as Houston went on a 20-3 run in gaining a 22-9 lead; they would take a 28-16 advantage going into the second quarter. Aaron Brooks entered the game at 2:25 left in the first quarter for Houston and would score 13 of the Rockets’ 15 points in a span of 5:15, helping Houston build a 16-point lead. It was 41-28 Houston when Los Angeles started building momentum, outscoring the Rockets 22-7 to end the first half and would remain on top for the balance of the contest.
Kobe Bryant led Los Angeles in scoring with 23 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocked shots while Pau Gasol added 20 with 15 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 blocked shots; Jordan Farmar came off the bench to chip in 16 (including 3 treys) with 3 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals. Houston was led by Brooks with 20 points, a rebound, 4 assists but 5 turnovers. Los Angeles (5-0) plays again on Tuesday when they fly to Dallas to take on the Mavericks while Houston (4-3) flies to Arizona to face the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday.
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