I had thought that prior to Thursday night’s game between the Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets, the Rockets had pretty much given up on themselves as the Lakers had annihilated them by 40 points on Tuesday.  But that just illustrates that in the NBA, anything can happen on any given day.  Thursday found Los Angeles shooting blanks while Houston shot nearly 51%, allowing the Rockets to extend this series to a Game 7 as they easily disposed of the Lakers 95-80 at Toyota Center.

Houston exploded to open the game, manufacturing a 17-1 run; Kobe Bryant made Los Angeles’ first basket near the 6-minute mark of the period, but the Rockets’ Luis Scola drained a jumper which gave Houston a 19-3 cushion.  Artest then followed up with a layup which extended their lead to 21-3.  The Lakers missed 14 of 20 shots, going into the second quarter down by 12.

Von Wafer made a 3-pointer with 5:51 left in the half to put Houston up 42-25 and forced Los Angeles coach Phil Jackson to use a timeout; however, the Rockets stayed in control and it was evident when Bryant shoved Artest and got whistled for a technical foul.  Aaron Brooks made the technical free throw, giving Houston a 47-31 advantage; the Rockets would go to their locker room with a healthy 52-36 lead at halftime.

The Lakers would come out strong early in the third quarter as they piut together a 16-2 run, but Houston’s Carl Landry converted a three-point play and Brooks drained a trey to help the Rockets slowly rebuild their lead.  They would make their last eight shots in the period, taking a 75-65 lead going into the fourth quarter; Landry slammed home a basket with 6:56 remaining in the game to put Houston up 81-71.  Brooks would score eight more points over the next 5 minutes to ice the game for the Rockets.

Houston’s high scorer was Brooks with 26 points (including three 3-pointers), 3 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals while Scola added 24 with 12 rebounds and 2 assists; Landry came off the bench to chip in 15 with 9 rebounds and 2 blocks.

Los Angeles was led by Bryant with 32 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, a steal and 3 blocks while Pau Gasol added 14 with 11 rebounds and 2 assists; Jordan Farmar pitched in 13 (including three treys) with 2 rebounds and a steal.  There will be a Game 7 on Sunday between Los Angeles and Houston with the winner taking on Denver in the Western Conference finals.